Originally Posted By Mr X ***>>Taking care of your family is now a selfish thing??<< Yeah, like X, I have no idea where you get that. Biden's children seem to adore him and he deliberately commuted home each day to be with them and not uproot them. And it's hilarious that making over 100,000 is called "not taking care of your family." No wonder the GOP is out of touch.*** Certainly plays into the idea that either you're rich or you're worthless. And that being middle-class is a shameful thing (though according to McCain, I suppose Biden would qualify as destitute considering an income of 4 million bucks a year doesn't even qualify you as "rich").
Originally Posted By Mr X Perhaps Biden should "take care of his family" like this lawmaker, since striving to be filthy rich is apparently the measuring stick of morality and "family values" now. <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2003/dec/17/nation/na-stevens17" target="_blank">http://articles.latimes.com/20...tevens17</a> Among the ways that Stevens became wealthy: * Armed with the power his committee posts give him over the Pentagon, Stevens helped save a $450-million military housing contract for an Anchorage businessman. The same businessman made Stevens a partner in a series of real estate investments that turned the senator’s $50,000 stake into at least $750,000 in six years. * An Alaska Native company that Stevens helped create got millions of dollars in defense contracts through preferences he wrote into law. Now the company pays $6 million a year to lease an office building owned by the senator and his business partners. Stevens continues to push legislation that benefits the company. * An Alaskan communications company benefited from the senator’s activities on the Commerce Committee. His wife, Catherine, earned tens of thousands of dollars from an inside deal involving the company’s stock. Heck, Biden could've easily gone down the same path. He just didn't care enough about his family, I guess. <---rolls eyes.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<And it's hilarious that making over 100,000 is called "not taking care of your family." No wonder the GOP is out of touch.>> It's really hilarious that you apparently do not know the difference between an income of $100K and a net worth of $100K. <<Perhaps he doesn't care about personal gain. How horrible.>> I never said anything about Biden not taking care of his kids. I was responding to your assertion that seemed to say accumulating a net worth of more than 100K was somehow a bad thing. I never once said that Biden was not taking care of his kids. I merely said that accumulating a net worth is not all about your own personal gain. More often than not it is to put yourself in a position where you can give your kids a college education without putting them or yourself in debt. It is to accumulate enough that you can get through your retirement without being a burden to your children. If it was all about yourself you would be blowing the money on fancy cars and vacations and to hell with the kids. But since you brought up Biden I will say a word or two in reference to him. Being a U.S. Senator pays $169,300 per year. Anyone 66 years old who is earning that kind of money should CERTAINLY have a net worth of more than $100,000 - $150,000. If Biden does not, you have to wonder a little about just what kind of money manager the man is. Many middle-class Americans with a far lower household income than Biden have managed to accumulate more than $150K of net worth.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <Being a U.S. Senator pays $169,300 per year. Anyone 66 years old who is earning that kind of money should CERTAINLY have a net worth of more than $100,000 - $150,000. If Biden does not, you have to wonder a little about just what kind of money manager the man is.> Isn't it possible that he "blows" it precisely on his kids and grandkids? I have no idea. But he doesn't seem to be a man of fancy personal tastes, so it seems fairly likely. Anyway, I respect him for not taking the road so many senators have and assuming that the job entitles him to cash in and be a multimillionaire. And his situation certainly puts the lie to the idea that he's not a "regular guy," which is how this started.
Originally Posted By ecdc >>Being a U.S. Senator pays $169,300 per year. Anyone 66 years old who is earning that kind of money should CERTAINLY have a net worth of more than $100,000 - $150,000. If Biden does not, you have to wonder a little about just what kind of money manager the man is.<< No, you don't. This is just more desperation to try and justify supporting McCain/Palin. If the shoe were on the other foot, as it were, we wouldn't be hearing about how McCain is a potentially bad money manager. We'd be hearing about how he's a down to earth guy who's interested in more than money. Good god, what does it take for someone on the other side to earn someone's respect? I guess anything to feel good about the choices we make...
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan I remember seeing that Biden sprang for pizza and donuts for reporters camped outside his home prior to the VP announcement. You don't get rich throwing your money around so loosely like that. ; )
Originally Posted By planodisney I guess his charitable giving isn't going to set him back any. Over the last ten years, in which he made over $200,000 up until 2007, he never gave over $380 to charity. One year they gave $120. When are liberals going to start practicing what they preach? This has to be the least charitable Presidential ticket in history.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 From a letter to NRO, which had published a story critical of Biden's charitable giving: "What Biden’s tax returns do not show are the hundreds of hours per year that are donated to charity. I am familiar with how generous the Bidens are with their time. The Senator and Dr. Jill Biden routinely show up and/or host formal and informal events for the homeless, military families, breast cancer education and educational scholarships. Jill Biden, a teacher, organized a book drive for the school libraries damaged by Katrina. Then Jill personally went with the truck to deliver the books. She is now rallying the community to help donate books to a local inner-city day care center. Perhaps the only fault is that they were not more publicity-hungry about these efforts." With his very modest net worth, it is obvious Biden doesn't have all that much left over at the end of the year. Whether he spends it on his kids and grandkids, his church (which he could probably claim as a charitable deduction but many people don't) or Amtrak tickets, I don't know. But he obviously gives of his time.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip Oh my God. I hadn't considered the income of Biden's wife. In 2007 the Bidens had income of $319,853. <<Total income: $319,853 ($71,000 income from royalties from his book; $66,546 - Jill Biden's teaching job; $20,500 - Joe Biden's teaching job; $161,708 - Joe Biden's Senate salary) • AMT: $2,721 • Deductions: $26,516 in state/local/real estate taxes; $38,712 home mortgage interest; $995 "Gifts to Charity" • Interest: $99 from various sources <what? Only $99 in interest? What does he do, put his money under the mattress?>> Source: <a href="http://thehive.modbee.com/?q=node/9901" target="_blank">http://thehive.modbee.com/?q=node/9901</a> With that kind of income how in the heck can they have net worth of only $100-$150K? That is pathetic. If I didn't know better I'd say he was shoving money up his nose. :-|
Originally Posted By planodisney I give of both and have less money than him. The amount I give to charity far surpasses that and it isn't just to my church.
Originally Posted By ecdc Wait a second, I'm confused. Is Biden stingy and greedy, or his he stupid with money? These criticisms of Biden officially have jumped the shark. I can get that people don't like his politics. But to criticize him for not making enough money and then to say he's stingy and doesn't give to charity? Good lord...
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan >>Is Biden stingy and greedy, or his he stupid with money?<< LOL, they've officially attacked themselves silly.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip << But to criticize him for not making enough money and then to say he's stingy and doesn't give to charity?>> Once again… you need to figure out the difference between what he earns and what his net worth is. He makes plenty of money... way more than I do, that's for sure!! It's what the hell he does with it that I wonder about. So far we know he doesn't save and he doesn't give to charity. The amount he pays for housing is not out of line, as evidenced by his home mortgage deductions. So where does it go?? He can spend money however the heck he wants. But for a guy who is potentially going to be President, wouldn't it be nice to think he had SOME ability to manage money? P.S. Biden's money management skill is far more relevant to the election than B.S. about Palin shooting wolves or attending moose-skinning parties. Pot. Kettle. Black.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 But that's the thing. If you're determined that there must be something wrong because you've decided not to vote for the guy, you might as well try to have it both ways.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <He can spend money however the heck he wants. But for a guy who is potentially going to be President, wouldn't it be nice to think he had SOME ability to manage money?> How do you know he doesn't "blow" it all on his kids and grandkids? You don't. By all accounts he's devoted to them, so maybe that's where it goes. All we really DO know is that, unlike most, he has not used his senate seat as a platform for personal enrichment. And I respect that.
Originally Posted By ecdc >>He can spend money however the heck he wants. But for a guy who is potentially going to be President, wouldn't it be nice to think he had SOME ability to manage money?<< And you have absolutely no idea what he does or how he manages his money. You look at what he earns, and his net worth, and immediately make a myriad of assumptions. And we all know what assuming does... Seriously RT, you're better than this. Really. Vote for McCain/Palin, more power to you. But your cognitive dissonance to justify your decision has reached epic proportions.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan >>Biden's money management skill is far more relevant<< But you haven't decided yet if he is wealthy and stingey or broke due to incompetant money management. You're just taking wild guesses, hoping for something to stick, and ignoring all evidence to the contrary. Who do you think you are, George W. Bush!??
Originally Posted By RoadTrip I didn't bring up the money thing. I didn't make it a "campaign issue". Dabob2 did. <<"Net worth: $100,000-$150,000 Details: Biden has spent virtually his whole life in public service and does not have much else aside from investments in a small array of mutual funds and cash accounts. He received a $112,000 advance from Random House for a book in 2005." Frankly, I'm surprised ANYONE who's been in the senate as long as he has hasn't "cashed in" on it, as most do. Hell, MY net worth is more than that. Nearly all senators find some way to become wealthy off it and "cash in" but he has not. I really respect that.>> Dabob thought Biden's net worth was a major selling point. I think it is just the opposite. Either way, I certainly did not start the discussion; I'm not the one who initially felt the topic was relevant. Goose. Gander. Good.
Originally Posted By alexbook Can I just say, from the Far Left fringe, that I was actually starting to like Obama up until he picked Biden? How can you seriously proclaim yourself an "agent of change" when you've got a Senate committee chairman as a running mate?
