Akin, West doled out big taxpayer-funded bonuses after losses
The former Tea Party congressmen gave staffers extra-large year-end bonuses after the 2012 elections
Topics: Todd Akin, Allen West, Republicans, Tea Party, 2012 Elections, Politics News
Former Tea Party Reps. Allen West, R-Fla., and Todd Akin, R-Mo., were among the House members who handed out the biggest taxpayer-funded bonuses to their staffers, just before leaving office after losing their races in 2012.
Ryan Grim from the Huffington Post reports:
Only retiring Democrat Gary Ackerman of New York was more generous with public money, barely topping Akin’s 98 percent increase in pay, the website shows. Allen West, a Tea Party favorite from South Florida, was the fourth biggest giver of taxpayer bonuses after he lost reelection to Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.). Rep. Chip Cravaack (R-Minn.) was the third most generous, according to LegiStorm.
West and Akin routinely decried wasteful and out-of-control government spending, calling for major cuts to social programs.
The numbers were taken from LegiStorm, a website that tracks congressional salaries. The site also shows that nine out of the 10 House members who gave out the biggest bonuses were Republicans, while 14 of the top 20 were outgoing members of Congress.
Jillian Rayfield is an Assistant News Editor for Salon, focusing on politics. Follow her on Twitter at @jillrayfield or email her at jrayfield@salon.com. More Jillian Rayfield.
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