Reddit reviews The View from Flyover Country: Dispatches from the Forgotten America

Right. Money matters for everyone up to a point. We all have to eat, have a roof over our heads, etc. It matters to hit the essentials. Beyond that, some people are there to get something done and some are there to make money. She may have to dial the knobs around to hit the right balance point, making sure staffers aren't worried all day about the basics, but she might as well use it as a filter above that because what she needs beyond a certain point are people who want to use the job to make life good for everyone, not people who are there for themselves.

The salary profiles other Congress people are choosing to offer is one that favors the rich in various ways. In this context, which is directly relevant, I can't recommend highly enough Sarah Kendzior's book The View from Flyover Country in this regard. (I listened on audiobook, which she reads herself and is excellent.)