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How did he get so rich from a government salary?

The amazing answer: he didn't. He was not wealthy (esp by congressional standards) circa 2000, when he retired from government. After that though, he wrote a few books and cofounded a TV network that was sold to Al Jazeera for 100m.

He sold a large stake in a TV network that he was involved with after leaving office:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Current_TV

And it isn't like Congress is poorly compensated. Currently Senators are paid $174,000 a year.

That sounds on the low end for mid-to-late career lawyers, doctors, and businessmen in the DC area.

Of course, the power and fame is seductive, so paying below market rate makes a lot of sense.

But, most congress people are already wealthy: the average senator has a net worth of $14 million, and the average representative in the house has a net worth of nearly $7 million [0]. There are of course outliers, with some having hundreds of millions and some having negative net worth.

[0] https://ballotpedia.org/Net_worth_of_United_States_Senators_...

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