You might not expect the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee to go around buying lottery tickets, but Sen. Judd Gregg is glad he did.
On a whim prompted by the frenzy over Wednesday's $340 million Powerball jackpot, the New Hampshire Republican bought a ticket that matched five of the six numbers in the Powerball game.
He collected a $853,492 check Thursday.
Gregg spent $20 on tickets this week at a Washington gas station, allowing the ticket machine to generate his numbers at random. As he was leaving, a clerk ran after him because he had left one of the tickets behind.
"She was a very pleasant young woman. She might have kept it and for all I know it might have been the winning ticket," Gregg said during a news conference conducted by telephone.
The lawmaker said he doesn't buy lottery tickets often but was intrigued by the publicity surrounding the huge jackpot. "Every American believes in good fortune and good luck and I'm no different," he said.
Gregg, 58, said he will donate part of his winnings to the Hugh Gregg Foundation, which supports New Hampshire charities and is named after Gregg's late father, a former governor of New Hampshire.
And the rest?
"Whatever my wife tells me to do with it?" he joked.
According to his latest financial disclosure form, Gregg has between $1.5 million and $6.2 million in stocks and other major investments.
The only jackpot-winning ticket was sold in Jacksonville, Ore. The holder of the ticket did not immediately step forward to claim the largest jackpot in Powerball history and the second-biggest in U.S. history.
Gregg's ticket was one of 49 that matched five of the six numbers.
And the rich get richer. lol.
haha...that is funny....shows people that lotteries are bad to play....they are a form of entertainment...just like watching movies and a sports game.
Brad
And the rich get richer. lol.
Yea typical, and the poor get poorer as usual.
Yea typical, and the poor get poorer as usual.
to make money you have to have money.thats why its easier for the rich to get richer.the poor can't even get out of the starters gate.....
Its a system.....They know how to keep the poor people poor and not let them pass that damn gate.....sooooo yeah
Well I've decided that should I ever by some quirk of fate win a fair amount, I would definitely like to spend a certain percentage on the poor...especially children as I've really seen poor children suffer here.
I help out with some charities and it can be really frustrating to have to constantly and literally beg for donations..it seems the more one has sometimes, the less they can part with it.
The senator has very good kismet.
It's nice to know that Powerball doesn't discriminate.
Lucky guy.
Jack
It's nice to know that Powerball doesn't discriminate.
Have a nice day ! and congratulations to Mr. senator
I think it's great that he won. It looks like my comment came off like I was being serious and jealous, but it was a joke. (I thought the lol pointed that out.) I think anyone that puts a buck in has the same chance of winning as anyone else and that's how it should be.
I'm not a Republican but I would vote for him because he supports Powerball. Congrats Sen Gregg!
The key to winning money is having money. Money attracts money!
. Now who has got money to donate to attract the big jackpots?!?!?!
Oh? Seems to me that it favors the rich about 90% of the time. If that is not discrimination I don't know what is. Perhaps 'favoritism of the least needy' is another term for it.
Having more money already means one can buy more tickets. Having more money also means being less likely to want to win anything less than hundreds of millions. Big jackpots like that one are more likely won by the already rich because they otherwise wouldn't play.
Having more money already means one can buy more tickets. Having more money also means being less likely to want to win anything less than hundreds of millions. Big jackpots like that one are more likely won by the already rich because they otherwise wouldn't play.
I kinda doubt those in the Fortune 500 sent their crews out to spend a few thousand on tickets. They're making too much money to get involved in something with horrible odds. The lottery is for the lower tier of hummanity, not the upper tier. You really think the Queen of England is contributing to UK Lotto? Or are you letting emotion over rule logic?
LckyLary,
Sounds like you're saying rich people don't play games like pick3 hoping to get a box hit for $40, so in those type games, poor people are competing with other poor people, but when the jackpot is $200M or more, the poor people are going to be competing with the rich people so it should be expected a few rich people are going to win once in a while. It's just a matter of who's playing the game.
It would have been VERY interesting if he hit the jackpot. How much of his winnings would he have donated?
It would have been VERY interesting if he hit the jackpot. How much of his winnings would he have donated?
So he's worth $7 million now. $115 million after hitting the jackpot.
You would be worth $105 million after hitting the jackpot.
He shouldn't donate any more money than you should.
If he is like most people with money, they have an accountant that tells them the exact amount to donate. Nothing more, nothing less. If you gave a bunch every time you saw a battered wife, and child with cancer, a starving Ethiopian, or a hurricane victum, you would soon be broke. If every person above the poverty level gave away everything they had above the poverty level, it would not even make a dent in the suffering in the world. The bleeding hearts want you to think it would, but it won't. Tomorrow there will still be suffering. There will never be a shortage of people who have less than you; intentionally or otherwise. The answer? Smile! Convince yourself to be happy! Donate your five dollars to the local church, then take the family out for pizza. Be happy. Those kids in Uganda that are having their heads chopped off will never know. But you will be happy. In the end, isn't that what counts? Convincing yourself things are sunny - not gloomy!
Congratulations to Senator Gregg for getting 5 numbers, but missed the PB. How off did Gregg's PB was when the PB was 29?
He should just donate as much as he wants. I don't think he should give up half or more of his winnings just because others believe he should. But if he wants to give up half that's fine to.
forgive me, but, who spends 20 dollars on a whim?
i hope that's not indicative of how our tax money is being spent.... ;)
Well if he is a millionaire then $20 is like $.50 to normal people. And he is entitled to that money. He works for it. Just like the money we spend at WalMart goes to there employees....we don't care how they spend it. Just because there salaries come from some of our taxes should give us the right to say how they can spend it.
Brad
anyone can play but it takes somebody lucky to win! thats all it is.
forgive me, but, who spends 20 dollars on a whim?
i hope that's not indicative of how our tax money is being spent.... ;)
Almost everyone in America.
A couple of hamburgers, cold drinks for two.
A movie for two with popcorn.
A leisurely drive somewhere burning seven or eight gallons of gas.
Roses for the wife.
A bit of fishing tackle.
A carton of smokes.
A CD of a favorite musician.
A concert (for one)
A new shirt, tie, blouse, pair of sneakers.
And so on.
Anyone in America who doesn't spend $20 on a whim is a rare piece of work.
Of course that's how tax money's being spent. Take a look at the cars wearing government tags, the offices the employees occupy, the computers they use.
But, of course, you already know all that.
Jack
forgive me, but, who spends 20 dollars on a whim?
i hope that's not indicative of how our tax money is being spent.... ;)
Women call that "spontaneity" – they crave that in men all the time. I bet every married woman on this site would be elated if their husband spent $20.00 on flowers once in a while. How about a quick dinner out, instead of the left-over meat loaf scheduled? A $20.00 splurge on a chance on millions, should be any different?
Sneakers cost more than $20 a pair. My Skechers "Superman Sneakers" were given to me.