Adding it up: Reuters estimates Gov. Bobby Jindal’s personal net worth is somewhere between $3.9 million $11.3 million, based on filings released by the Federal Election Commission that Jindal has filed as part of his presidential run. The filings show Jindal has 26 investment accounts and a couple of bank accounts worth between $3.9 million and $11.3 million. Reuters notes that because the value of each account was declared within a certain range, it’s not possible to pin down Jindal’s wealth more precisely. According to the documents, Jindal earned between $401,000 and $675,000, including a salary of $200,000 from the state and an advance on book royalties of nearly $76,000. Read the full story.
By the numbers: The U.S. economy posted a solid rebound in the April-June quarter after a harsh winter, led by a surge in consumer spending and a recovery in foreign trade that bode well for the rest of the year. It also ended up squeezing out some growth in the first quarter, reversing an earlier estimate that the economy shrank at the start of the year. The Commerce Department announced today that the gross domestic product, the economy’s total output of goods and services, grew at a 2.3% annual rate in the second quarter. The government also said GDP in the January-March period grew 0.6% instead of shrinking at a 0.2% pace. The Associated Press has the full story.
The next step: A Senate panel has approved energy legislation that would lift the 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports and open some areas of the Outer Continental Shelf to oil and gas exploration. The Associated Press reports Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, chairman of the panel, championed the plan to lift the restrictions. It passed by a party-line vote of 12-10. Murkowski says lifting the ban would turn the U.S. into an energy superpower. Democrat Maria Cantwell of Washington, who opposes lifting the ban, describes the votes as an important first step in a long journey. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved an array of energy legislation today, with lawmakers wanting to move the energy legislation out of committee before the August recess.
