$172,000/Yr is a Modest Salary?

“We’ve been on this ride together since I won my Senate primary in 2004,” Mr. Obama said. “He’s had a six-year stretch now where basically he’s been going 24/7 with relatively modest pay. I think it’s natural for someone like Robert to want to step back for a second to reflect, retool and that, as a consequence, brings about both challenges and opportunities for the White House.”

President Obama to The New York Times on press secetary Roberts Gibbs leaving his post at White House.

I am simply stunned by how obtuse this president is.  While I am sure that there was a time that Gibbs did make a modest salary, like when he was working for the campaign for senate.  Once those days ended, Gibbs has made a decent living (that I paid for, mind you).  Staffers in the U.S. Senate have a pretty good pay scale once you go above the lower level positions.  Many of which also pay six figures.  On top of which you have very good benefits package for yourself and your family.  Roberts Gibbs is now making a salary of $172,000/Yr there is nothing modest about that.  Especailly when you consider how many people in this country live on far less. 

Gibbs slaved away with President Obama for the past 6 years on his modest salary, and now has put himself in the position to make about $30-50K per speech.  Again, a haul that gives him more money in a day that some earn in year.  Gibbs also is not really leaving the Obama circle, he will be repositioning himself to gear up for the upcoming re-election campaign, which will give him another "modest" salary. 

Has President Obama failed to grasp the fact that we still have 10% unemployment and many many more that are underemployed and not counted in that unemployment level because they have given up?  This is a party that is constantly attacking the "rich", saying that they don't do their fare share as far as taxes are concerned.  Yet, they seem to have no problem being the people that make that money and take every possible tax write off that they can find.  All the while lecuturing people on how they should be paying more of their hard earned salaries to the government treasury that is chock filled with ineffiencies and fraud.  I guess we need to send more money to the treasury so we can pay the "modest" salaries of people like Baghad Bob Gibbs.