Posted on Wed, Jun. 15, 2005


Forms reveal South Carolina senators' finances


Associated Press

U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham and Jim DeMint are financially comfortable, but neither South Carolina Republican is in the upper echelon of a Senate increasingly known as the "Millionaires Club."

The latest forms released this week offer a glimpse at senators' personal finances, but their assets and liabilities are reported in broad ranges that make it impossible to know exactly how much each lawmaker is worth.

Graham reported assets between $326,000 and $733,000, in IRAs, mutual funds, other investment funds, banking accounts and property.

He holds stock in Applied Microcircuits Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Citigroup Inc., EMC Corp., Intel Corp., Nokia Corp. and Siebel Systems worth $6,000 to $92,000.

Graham owns a Washington, D.C., townhouse worth $250,000-$500,000. He reported $5,000 to $15,000 in annual income from the property from renting out a room, Graham spokesman Kevin Bishop said. He also owns property at Cross Creek Plantation that is undeveloped in Seneca and worth $1,000 to $15,000.

DeMint, who was elected to the Senate in November after three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, reported assets of $32,000 to $130,000 in IRAs and stocks that generated income of $3,200 to $8,500.

"It just goes to show you don't have to have millions in personal wealth to serve in the Senate - just a lot of good ideas and hard work," said DeMint's spokesman Wesley Denton.

DeMint sold stock in BB&T Corp. worth $2,000 to $30,000, in the middle of his campaign for Senate last year.

The forms are filed annually by the 535 members of Congress, who must report outside income sources, assets, liabilities, gifts, speaking fees and travel paid by special interests.

Some of the Senate's wealthiest members are Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., who has blind trusts valued between $7 million and $35 million; Sen. Jon S. Corzine, D-N.J., had total assets in the range of $85.5 million to $261.5 million; Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV, D-W.Va., reported three blind trusts worth more than $80 million. And Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., has a blind trust worth more than $50 million and owns the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team, also valued at more than $50 million.





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