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Founded in January 2009, PubliCola is a blog about Seattle written by journalists who are dedicated to non-partisan, original daily reporting that prioritizes a balanced approach to news. Started by longtime local editor and award-winning reporter Josh Feit, PubliCola is the first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol.

PubliCola was off and running. In June 2009, PubliCola hired another award-winning journalist, super-sourced Seattle city hall reporter Erica C. Barnett.

People were afraid that blogging would change journalism. Instead, we believe journalism can change blogging. Twenty-first century journalism may look and feel different, and yes Erica isn't afraid to get cranky, but we're committed to making sure online news still delivers independent, reliable, even-keeled coverage. And most of all, we're committed to making sure the coverage sparks honest civic debate.

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The first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol and Seattle city hall, PubliCola has been called a “must-read” by the Seattle Post Intelligencer and a hot “New Media Mover and Shaker” by Seattle Magazine—which also cited our own Erica C. Barnett as the city's No. 1 news nerd.

Cantwell Richest Among WA Delegation, Herrera Beutler Poorest

That Washington   November 16, 2011 at 1:54 pm Josh Feit

US Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), who everyone from Wall Street Journal reporter Ron Suskind, to the NYT, to PubliCola, to the Nation, has identified as a defiant lefty populist (we’ve gone as far to say her positions presciently foreshadowed  the Occupy Wall Street protests) has now been identified as a One Percenter.

“I don’t think it stopped Ted Kennedy and it doesn’t stop me. It’s about digging in on what some of these issues are. Consolidation of banking  is going to create continued havoc if we don’t fix this.”—Sen. Maria Cantwell on her wealth.

A new study by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics found:

Fully 37 Senate Democrats and 30 Senate Republicans reported an average net worth in excess of $1 million in 2010, according to the Center’s analysis. The same was true of 110 House Republicans and 73 House Democrats.

The median estimated net worth among Senate Republicans was $2.43 million, and the median net worth among members of the Democratic caucus in the Senate was $2.69 million, by the Center’s tally.

Meanwhile, in the House, the median estimated net worth of a GOP House member was $834,250 in 2010, according to the Center’s research, compared to a median net worth of $635,500 among House Democrats.

The median estimated net worth among House members, overall, stood at $756,765 in 2010. That’s up about 17 percent compared to the median net worth of $645,500 among House members in 2008, but down about 1 percent compared to 2009, when House members posted a median estimated net worth of $765,010, according to the Center’s analysis.

The study found that Cantwell, a former RealNetworks executive, is the 81st richest among the 249 senators and reps who are millionaires—and the richest among the Washington State delegation. Cantwell has an estimated net worth of $6.2 million, according to the CRP. US Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA, 5) was our delegation’s only other millionaire. McMorris Rodgers ranked  220th among the group of One Percenters, with an estimated net worth of $1.3 million.

The poorest, by more than $315,000, is freshman Republican Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA, 3).

Washington State’s delegation breaks down this way:

US Sen. Maria Cantwell (D), $6.2 million

US Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R), $1.3 million

US Rep. Doc Hastings (R), $962,000

US Sen. Patty Murray, $916,000

US Rep. Jim McDermott (D), $767,000

US Rep. Norm Dicks (D), $706,000

US Rep. Adam Smith (D), $407,000

US Rep. Rick Larsen (D), $390,000

US Rep. Dave Reichert (R), $361,000

US Rep. Jay Inslee (D), $323,000

US Rep. Jaime Herrera Beeutler (R), $8,000

Herrera Beutler’s net worth puts her at the 498th “wealthiest” out of the 529 people on the list. (US Rep. Alice Hastings (D-Fla) is ranked last with a negative net worth of $4.7 million. We have a message in to Herrera Beutler to find out what she thinks about being at the bottom of the list.

The richest? US Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) with an estimated net worth of $448 million.

PubliCola has asked Sen. Cantwell before about the dichotomy between her wealth and her Woody Guthrie politics. She told us:

I don’t think it stopped Ted Kennedy and it doesn’t stop me. It’s about digging in on what some of these issues are. Consolidation of banking  is going to create continued havoc if we don’t fix this.


  • Jakers

    Herrera Buetler is not the kind of person I want running our country! With a salary of about $170k per year and her net worth is only $8k!? No wonder our country has problems easy in, easy out!

  • Blue Light

    At least $8K is written in black.  The “kind of persons” currently running the country have our worth written in red.

  • Mark

    Anyone who recently bought a home and hasn’t paid it off more than likely has a negative net financial worth.  I’d rather have people like Herrera Buetler than someone out of touch with the financial struggles many are facing here in Washington and throughout the country. 

  • Jakers

    You are forgetting who got us here by controlling both houses and the executive branch for many years prior.

  • repete

    Is it the case that they don’t need to amass any wealth because they can rely on a nice defined benefit retirement?

  • we need data points

    so, anyone know what the net welath is of the person who’s the exactly poorest person in the top 1%?

    $300K  ?  what?

  • shane phillips

    “McMorris Rodgers ranked  220th among the group of One Percenters, with an estimated net worth of $1.3 million.”

    An estimated net worth of 1.3 million probably doesn’t put you anywhere near the top 1%. You’re thinking of annual income, in which case you’d still probably be squarely in the lower half of the top 1%.

  • jimu

    You’re right. I think the line is around $9 million for the one percent, which leaves out Cantwell, also.

  • repete

    Qualitative interpretation of numbers is an essential vitamin
    to grow strong ideology in 12 ways.

  • http://www.twitter.com/joeszi Joe Szilagyi

    If you bring up Bush, Bush Sr or Reagan all massively running up debt at much faster rates than Carter or Clinton (fact, anyone can Google it), you are un-American.

  • http://peacetreefarm.org N in Seattle

    That would be ALCEE Hastings.  He’d probably get a chuckle out of being called Alice.

  • we need data points

    no way!  got source, or just guessing?

    the fact we don’t all know what the line is off the top of our head reflects the power of the 1% — we should know this just like we know that a classroom with 40 kids is “too big” or the right work day is “8 hours.” 

  • gohuskies

    Rep. Hastings also has one of my all-time favorite quotes in an official statement in response to one of the many scandals he finds himself imbroiled in – “Sorry haters, God is not finished with me yet.”

  • Go ‘way, ‘batin’

    Does that woman have any pictures that are not so creepy?

  • http://yrihf.com John Bailo

    Certainly she can espouse liberal politics like so many other rich lefties, but it seems the ultimate in hypocrazy for her to be involved in financial regulation issues when her campaign was floated on RNWK stock that she sold in the early 2000s that has since plummeted in value.   She’s just another Madoff…on a grander scale.

  • Jakers

    And how the Rs basically controlled congress (and thus the budget) from 1994 to 2006.

  • shane phillips

    You’re kind of jumping to conclusions here. Most people don’t know far more important things, like the names of their representatives or the general allocations of federal or state spending. I myself am pretty knowledgeable about federal spending, but admit that I don’t know even the general percentages spent from the state budget. I assume it goes public schools, then medical (medicaid), then maybe non-school personnel. That’s the kind of thing you can break up into a billion different overlapping categories though. The point is though, it’s kind of ridiculous to blame lack of knowledge on some shadowy elite. In some ways they’re certainly accountable for making our country a worse place than it could or should be, but let’s not get carried away.