Section 4

The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing (sic) Senators.

The Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by Law appoint a different Day.

Section 5

Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each House may provide.

Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.

Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.

Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

Section 6

The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been encreased (sic) during such time; and no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of either House during his Continuance in Office.

The evidence is clear: Americans overwhelmingly disapprove of Congress and don’t believe their representatives share their priorities. When it comes to personal priorities, at least, voters have good reason to be skeptical of Congress. Most members of Congress simply don’t share in the average American experience. 

While just 1 percent of Americans are millionaires, 66 percent of senators are millionaires, as are 41 percent of House members.

Once in office, members of Congress enjoy access to connections and information they can use to increase their wealth, in ways that are unparalleled in the private sector. And once politicians leave office, their connections allow them to profit even further. Most Americans are being represented by people who, any way you cut it, are in the elite of the financial elite.

Once a candidate actually makes it into Congress, he’s presented with new opportunities to increase his wealth — some that are unmatched in the corporate world.

There are some ethics restrictions in place that limit the income congressional members can take in; for instance, they’re not allowed to take in outside income (from sources like speaking fees) that amounts to more than 15 percent of their salary (the base pay for a member of Congress is $174,000).

And like everyone else, members of Congress are subject to current insider trading laws. However, current insider trading laws do not apply to nonpublic information about current or upcoming congressional activity — that’s because members of Congress aren’t technically obligated to keep that information confidential.

Congressmen can get away with the type of insider trading that would send Martha Stewart to prison. They go into hearings and confidential meetings with business interests, understanding new legislation is going to come out next week, and are free to trade on that information. 

Officially, House ethics rules say it would “impractical or unreasonable” to ask members of Congress to divest from industries over which they have jurisdiction, in part because a congressman may have been elected to represent a “common interest” he shares with his constituents. Thus, the rules say, if asked to divest in that industry, the member of Congress may be “ineffective in representing the real interests of the constituents.”

One really effective way for a corporation to do influence peddling without actually bribing a member of Congress is hire the spouse. Hire these spouses at exorbitant salaries, and that money really goes directly into the pocket of the member.

Government by the people, of the people and for the people? Really? Not so much.

A study took data from nearly 2,000 public-opinion surveys and compared what the people wanted to what the government actually did. What they found was extremely unsettling: The opinions of the bottom 90% of income earners in America has essentially no impact at all. …unless you’re an “economic elite.”

If you’ve ever felt like your opinion doesn’t matter and that the government doesn’t really care what you think, well … you’re right.