The net worths and salaries of 13 of the richest politicians in America

When people think of rich politicians, they think of Trump. The 45th president made a name for himself as a businessman, both in real life and on TV. Trump's net worth easily rockets him above all other presidents.

As the highest paid federal employee, Dr. Fauci earns a pretty penny running the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). In 2019, the latest available federal salary info, Dr. Fauci earned $417,608. As director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984, Dr. Fauci earned about $3.6 million between 2010 and 2019.

Seeing as he still owns 88 percent of Bloomberg, a massive media and financial data company he’s been building since 1981, Michael Bloomberg is personally worth an insane amount of money. The failed presidential candidate is worth over $50 billion according to Forbes.

As a senator from Utah, Mitt Romney only earns $174,000 per year. But as CEO of Bain & Company, and then-founder of the company’s private equity arm Bain Capital, Romney amassed a quarter of a billion dollars.

It’s difficult to tell how much money Hillary Clinton has now, or to separate the finances of the former secretary of state, senator, and first lady from the finances of her husband, former President Bill Clinton. No matter the exact number, the Clintons have climbed their way out a financial hole left at the end of Bill’s presidency, thanks in part to Hillary Clinton’s successful books, like Hard Choices and What Happened.

You may be surprised to see America’s first president on this list, but accounting for inflation, George Washington was worth over $500 million back in the day. The founding fathers were generally pretty wealthy, with Thomas Jefferson crushing a lot of presidential competition as well.

Among Donald Trump’s cabinet, which was filled with rich folks, former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos was a whale among minnows. According to Forbes, the child of one fortune and the wife of another, DeVos holds interests in all sorts of industries, from real estate in the Bahamas to SpaceX.

Former Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin followed his father into work at Goldman Sachs, before launching his own firm. He put money behind a few famous films too, including huge box office winners like Avatar.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is among the highest paid governors in the nation, making 200 grand each year. While estimates vary on his total net worth, it could be near $5 million.

Speaking engagements, book sales, and a handsome presidential pension all bring in funds for the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama. Combining his star power with former First Lady Michelle Obama, whose memoir Becoming was also a best-seller, the New York Post puts the couple’s total wealth at $135 million.

Senate Minority Leader MItch McConnell didn’t start out on the richer side of the Senate, but since 2008 he has built up his wealth from $3.1 million to 10 times that, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Much of his money comes from his wife, former United States Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao.

Estimates vary for Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s wealth, but PolitiFact sifted through the noise to come up with an average of about $97 million. That puts her toward the top of congresspeople in terms of total worth, but far from the No. 1 spot, held by Senator Mark Warner of Virginia.

Senator Bernie Sanders has earned about $2 million over his career, a far cry from what most voters might expect of the self-described democratic socialist. It’s still pretty far from the highest earners among his peers in Congress, though.