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From: OpenCongress
Congressman Spencer Bachus receives almost 1.5 million dollars a year in campaign contributions. Over 80% of that money comes from outside of his District [the 6th Congressional District of Alabama] and from outside of his State.
The 6-Term, 17 year incumbent is known for playing the stock market, taking money from the big foreign owned banks and putting his assets under his wife’s name in the attempt to hide what he is doing.
Open Secrets states - Although Bachus’ personal funds may have slipped a little in 2008 compared to 2007, the recession certainly didn’t hit his bank account as severely as it did those of many Americans. In 2008, Bachus was worth between $468,000 and $1.5 million. (Because lawmakers report the value of their investments in ranges, it is impossible to determine their exact wealth.) Bachus’ assets included between $1,000 and $15,000 in Citigroup, between $1,000 and $16,000 in Fidelity Investments and between $100,001 to $250,000 in a Smith Barney IRA. Since 2005, when he reported 25 financial transactions, he’s been much more active, clocking 367 total transactions in 2008. Nearly all of these transactions involved him selling assets.Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., the ranking Banking Committee member, lists just one major asset: a $100,000-$250,000 rental home in Birmingham. But he reported significant assets in his wife’s name, including retirement accounts and annuities worth between $350,000 and $750,000, mutual funds worth $100,000-$250,000, and an investment in a real estate entity worth $100,000-$250,000. Those investments yielded as much as $100,000 in capital gains and rental income in 2007 - and that is just the beginning.
One year after the biggest economic collapse since the Great Depression, Congress is still debating new financial regulations to protect consumers and prevent risk-taking in the financial sector. The House Committee on Financial Services is currently undertaking the important first step of writing, amending and voting on some of the pieces of the long-proposed financial regulatory reform. While debating these issues top committee members have been the recipients of disproportionate campaign contributions from the very industry that they are tasked with regulating.
Twenty-seven committee members have so far received over one-quarter of their contributions from the finance, insurance and real estate (FIRE) sector. This includes Chair Barney Frank, Ranking Member Spencer Bachus, four subcommittee chairs and four subcommittee ranking members. Of the twenty-seven, twelve committee members received over 35% of their contributions in 2009 from the FIRE sector. Finance - Insurance - Real Estate
Ranking Member Bachus, a crucial decision maker on the committee, received 71% of his campaign contributions from the finance, insurance and real estate (FIRE) sector so far this year. (These numbers run from January 1-June 30.) For his career, the Alabama congressman receives 45% of his contributions from the FIRE sector. Bachus leads the committee in his reliance on FIRE sector campaign contributions.
Spencer Bachus = $226,930.00
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