Times Are Tough...Just Ask Denny Rehberg

Out there is Missoula, Montana, they had one of those Town meetings, and one man, Denny Rehberg, stood up to talk about the tough times he and his family are facing in this economy: 

"I'm a small businessman. My wife is a small businessman. You know she hasn't taken a salary in ten years? She has not, as a result of the business, because we are struggling like everyone else... with the economy....I have the same struggle. I have no employees. And we have the same struggle because we have the ability to borrow the money but the problem is, in our particular case, if you don't have the ability to pay back the loan, then you don't -- then what's the reason to go to the bank and borrow the money?" 

Sounds like someone is caught between a rock and a hard place. Also, it sounds like the same struggle that millions of Americans are going through right now. Except for one thing.

Denny Rehberg is a member of Congress. He's a Republican. He is also the 23rd richest member of Congress who, according to his own most recent financial disclosure form, which covers 2009, has a net worth of between $6,598,014 and $56,244,998.

And he struggles "like everyone else."

A closer look at his disclosure forms reveals that Denny Rehberg has millions of dollars of equity in the agricultural properties he owns. His farm and ranch land is valued at between $11.5 million and $56.75 million, and his total assets were worth somewhere between $12.2 and $57.5 million.

Yet he struggles "like everyone else."

Denny Rehberg also reported three liabilities on the properties he owns, that totals between $1,300,003 and $5,600,000 for development, construction and agricultural loans. Rehberg also reported only making between $35,610 and $118,800 on the assets in 2009, which does not include his $174,000 annual salary from Congress.

Yet he struggles "like everyone else."

And he's a member of Congress, and of the GOP, who have worked tirelessly to fix the economy, create jobs and.....what's that? Oh, right, they didn't. They worked tirelessly to forge a symbolic repeal of Health Care Reform, worked tirelessly to insure that the Bush tax cuts to the rich stayed in place; and are working tirelessly to defend the unconstitutional DOMA in court.

He is worth as little as six million or as much as fifty-six million. And we the people pay him almost 175K a year. 

And he wants our pity.

Via TPM