The Washington stint was supposed to be like a long lasting jury duty. You go, do your duty, not get filthy rich, not have a gold-plated pension for life, not live in the lap of luxury, partying along with the upper echelon of society. That’s how it was supposed to be up here as well.
If you get elected up here and serve six years, you then pull a giant federal pension for the rest of your life. Six years. And you don’t even have to do a good job! You can screw up royally (as they all do) and wave goodbye with a giant monthly cheque for the rest of your life.
Not a bad gig. Here they stay till after death, get rich somehow on a small salary, but it’s the power that keeps them there the most.