What is Mark Meadows' net worth? Trump loyalist was once richest member of Congress
On November 30, Donald Trump's former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows made headlines for doing something no Trump loyalist did before - cooperate with the January 6 Congressional investigation. Reportedly, Meadows "produced records to the committee and will soon appear for an initial deposition," unlike other pro-Trumpers who were subpoenaed. Given Meadows' closeness to the former President, it spells bad news for Donald Trump and his cronies.
Others the committee subpoenaed have chosen to fight back. Steve Bannon was charged with contempt of Congress, a fate that could befall others who refuse to cooperate. Dan Scavino, the former White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications went "missing", making it hard for Congress to serve his subpoena. So far, neither Trump nor his family has been called up, but there's a strong feeling he could be, especially if Meadows talks.
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Interestingly, January 6 isn't the only mystery Meadows is involved in. In 2012, he was elected to the US House of Representatives from North Carolina's 11th congressional district. At the time, he had the distinction of being one of the wealthiest members of Congress, but the money suddenly disappeared, leaving him with less than a million by the time he left office in 2019.
What is Mark Meadows' net worth?
As of 2021, there's no clear consensus on what Meadows' net worth is. Some say it's $1 million, others say it could be around $3 million. Meadows didn't file a House financial disclosure in 2019 at all, so the last known record of his net worth is 2018. Open Secrets says his net worth that year was $666,010. That's a huge drop off from the $7 million it was in 2013, the year he joined Congress.
So what happened? No one really knows. While in Congress, Meadows had a history of odd transactions that led to repeated fines by the House Ethics Committee. That includes a $40,000 fine in November 2018 for "not do enough to address" sexual harassment allegations against his former chief of staff, Kenny West. Even with those hefty fines, it's unclear where his millions went. Shortly after the 2020 Presidential Election, he liquidated as much as $200,000 in stocks, at a time when his job prospects were so thin, he was actually considering a gig with the Trump Organization.
Post that, Meadows' net worth has only become more mysterious. But it hasn't stopped him from living the good life. In 2019, he took nearly $40,000 worth of trips that were paid for by nonprofit groups and conservative advocacy organizations, CNBC reported. So clearly he has deep ties to Trumpworld, something that would have definitely gotten deeper from his job as Trump's Chief of Staff.
Meadows role on January 6
It's unclear what exactly Meadows' role was in the insurrection, but it's an answer the committee is hoping they will get. He reached an agreement with the committee to give "voluntary responses" on topics he does not believe are covered by executive privilege his lawyer said. What those topics are we don't know yet but are likely to in coming weeks as Meadows' testimony is made public, at least in part.
The Associated Press reported, "Meadows could potentially decline to answer the panel’s questions about his most sensitive conversations with Trump and what Trump was doing on Jan. 6." While that means there's little chance Meadows' testimony could directly implicate Trump, it could link the insurrection with other figures in Trumpworld like Bannon, Alex Jones, and possibly other members of Congress.
