Rep. Eric Cantor Cashes In—On Wall Street, Making $3.4 Million A Year
09/03/2014
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Cantor in the days when he was making $174,000

Cantor back in the days when he was making $174,000 a year "representing" the people of Virginia's 7th District

Well, that didn't take long.  Eric Cantor was in such a hurry to cash in on his crony capitalist connections that he resigned so he wouldn't be bothered with representing the Virginians who tossed him out of office.

And this bold Reform Conservative who was going to change the way Republicans worked ended up just where you probably expected — working for a bank on Wall Street, bringing home $3.4 million a year.

After Rep. Eric Cantor lost his primary to a tea party challenger in June, he could have stayed on as a lame duck, collecting his salary and voting as a full member of Congress through January 2015. Instead, Cantor decided to step down from his job as the GOP's majority leader and resign his seat early. Cantor claimed that the decision to call it quits was in the interests of his constituents. "I want to make sure that the constituents in the 7th District will have a voice in what will be a very consequential lame-duck session," Cantor said at the time, explaining that he'd timed his decision so his replacement could be seated as soon as possible.

No one believed it—on August 1, the Huffington Post's Arthur Delaney and Eliot Nelson wrote that voters would soon hear about "Eric Cantor's forthcoming finance job." A month later, their prediction has proven true: On Monday, the Wall Street Journal reported that Cantor will soon start work at Moelis & Co, an investment bank. Cantor—whose experience prior to becoming a professional politician largely consisted of working in the family real estate development business—will earn a hefty salary for his lack of expertise: According to Business Insider, he's set to make $3.4 million from the investment firm. "Mr. Moelis said he is hiring Mr. Cantor for his "judgment and experience" and ability to open doors—and not just for help navigating regulatory and political waters in Washington," the Journal reported.

[Surprise! Eric Cantor lands $3.4 million job on Wall Street, by Patrick Caldwell, Mother Jones, September 2, 2014]

Real champion of the people, that Cantor.  What will Americans do without him?
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