Is the President paid too much?

This is just my opinion.

The following is making the rounds on Facebook:

Salary of the US President...$400,000. Salary of retired US Presidents...$180,000. Salary of House/Senate...$174,000. Salary of Speaker of House...$223,500....Salary of Majority/Minority Leaders...$193,400..........Average US Salary...$33,000 to $77,000. HELLO! I think we found where the cuts should be made!

Well, I am not so sure.

It's true that most Americans make much less. The median salary in the U.S. is $46326.
(http://www.mybudget360.com/how-much-does-the-average-american-make-breaking-down-the-us-household-income-numbers/). Half the people in the U.S. make more than that, half less. It's clear that our elected officials are in the former half.


The median income for a person in the U.S. who is over 25, works full time and has a professional degree is $100,000. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_income_in_the_United_States )

If we look at people who head organizations we find that the CEOs of some charities make pretty hefty salaries. At least fifteen earn salaries over $800,000 and a few earn compensation of over $2 million per year.
( http://www.newsweek.com/2010/10/26/15-highest-paid-charity-ceos.html )

In the businesss world it is not uncommon for CEOs to make multi-millions of dollars each year. In addition to seven-digit salaries, many get large amounts of money from stock options and similar forms of compensation.
( http://www.forbes.com/2010/04/27/compensation-chief-executive-salary-leadership-boss-10-ceo-compensation-intro.html )

Of course, it's not our taxes that pay those salaries. We have a choice as to whether to give the donations or pay for the products that make them happen. We don't have a choice with the salaries of our government leaders. Still, Scripture tells us in 1 Timothy 5:18 that "A worker is worthy of his wages." The president has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders. I think he deserves adequate compensation. $400,00 really doesn't seem like too much. The same holds true for members of congress. The one item I am not sure about is the $180,000 per year pension for former presidents.

I am not speaking of the current incumbents specifically, but of the offices of President, Senator and Representative. I am also not talking about what should happen if the government shuts down. If others aren't being paid maybe these people shouldn't be either.


Anyway, this is all just my opinion and I am not very knowledgeable about politics, so maybe I'm crazy. But I thought I'd put it out there.

What do you think?