Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren has a dirty little secret.
The self-appointed champion of the people that claims she wants to raise the government’s taxes on the wealthy and redistribute their income to the lower class?
She’s worth up to $10 million dollars.
She has been firmly in the one-percent for over a decade — and yet she still qualifies for tens of thousands of dollars in tax returns every year.
Critics say Warren’s surprise move to release her federal and state returns on Wednesday is a clear signal that the Massachusetts liberal is laying the groundwork for a run for president in 2020.
So how much money does Warren make every year? It might surprise you.
The woman who once said she wants to raise income taxes up to 90 percent for some Americans is rolling in cash.
Warren’s 2017 federal returns show the former Harvard University law professor and her husband, Bruce Mann, reported an adjusted gross income of $913,000. The returns listed their total tax as $268,484, and the couple was eligible for a refund of almost $34,000.
The salary for a U.S. senator is $174,000.
Although she’s frequently mentioned as a possible White House contender, Warren has said she’s focused on her Senate re-election campaign this year. She first won election in 2012 by defeating then incumbent Republican Sen. Scott Brown.
Warren has burnished her credentials among the liberal wing of the Democratic party by frequently sparring with Republican President Donald Trump.
In addition to her salary as a senator, Warren reported $430,370 in income from her writing in 2017. Warren has written or co-written several books, mostly about how she’s a champion of the middle class and poor. Her latest “This Fight Is Our Fight: The Battle to Save America’s Middle Class” was published last year.
The couple’s income has fluctuated from year to year, but has remained sky-high. In 2016 the couple reported an adjusted gross income of $717,000. During that year, Warren reported income of $224,000 from “consulting, lecturing, writing, investing.”
In 2014, Warren and her husband reported a far higher adjusted gross income of more than $1.5 million. That year, Warren reported a net profit of more than $1 million from consulting, lecturing, writing and investing.
The couple has lost considerable amounts on investments: $217,217 in 2008 when they sold holdings in Sentinel Investments and $91,270 the next year on the sale of Dreyfus Third Century fund. However, their tax returns list very little wealth overall in stocks, with IBM dividends growing to $3,621 by 2012 but divested by 2013.
Warren is unopposed in the Democratic primary in Massachusetts. Three Republicans are competing in the Sept. 4 contest for the chance to challenge Warren in November.
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The Associated Press contributed to this article