Democrats love to demonize the rich, but a surprising number of Democrat pols find money cascading into their coffers as they rise in politics. Take Barack Obama, the freshman senator from Illinois, a man who excites intense public interest far beyond that accorded to other well—spoken and pleasant low seniority senators who are not black.

Obama, whose white mother raised him after his father bugged out, has become some sort of symbol, apparently. Being a symbol evidently is quite lucrative. The AP reports,

According to joint tax returns filed with the Internal Revenue Service and released to the Associated Press, the Obamas, with their two girls, had $1.67 million in total income last year — about $70,000 more than the total for all of 1998 through 2004.

Book royalties and advances brought in about $1.2 million for the senator—author, whose first book, an autobiography published about a decade ago, became a best—seller during his 2004 campaign.

In late 2004, Obama landed a three—book deal worth $1.9 million with publishing houses under Random House Inc. The first book under the contract, "The Audacity of Hope: Reclaiming the American Dream," is scheduled for release in mid—October and is to focus on his political convictions and how he became the Senate's only black member.

During 2005, the Chicago Democrat's income as a public official almost tripled to $154,047, after he left the Illinois state Senate for the nation's capital.

His wife's income as an administrator at the not—for—profit University of Chicago Hospitals nearly tripled to $316,962, from $121,910.

Isn't amazing how being married to a senator correlates to a tripling of income?

Thomas Lifson  9 26 06