Millionaires-in-Chief

Romney's money
Net Worth: $202 million

Where he got it
Romney won a combo M.B.A. and law degree from Harvard and promptly took himself to Wall Street, or at least the Boston version.

He started with the Boston Consulting Group and moved on to Bain & Co., another consulting firm, where he became vice president in 1978.

Six years later he founded Bain Capital, a private equity spin-off that at one time or another had stakes in Bright Horizons, Domino's Pizza, Staples and The Sports Authority, among others. Romney still receives income from Bain as a retired partner but no longer has any say in operations.

Since 1999, when Romney entered public life, taking over the troubled operations of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, and later as Governor of Massachusetts, he has donated his public service salaries to charity.

He has said he would do the same with his presidential earnings. He doesn't need the small change.

Where it goes
Romney and his wife Ann hold about 100 stocks, including Dell, Disney and Target, as well as foreign issues including the Bank of Yokohama and China Mobile, in two blind trusts.

About 43 percent of the Romney portfolio is tied up in private equity investments through Bain Capital Management. About $38 million is in Federal Home Loan Bank bonds that have maturities stretching out to 2016.

Last year Romney's adviser sold dozens of stocks, some of which he believed would be politically sensitive.

Among them: gaming companies such as Bally and Harrah's, and companies that do business with Iran, including European oil producers Eni SpA and Total. The sales explain Romney's ultrahigh 2006 income.

How he could do better
Romney is the candidate with the most riding on the estate-tax debate. Hugh Smith and Stewart Welch of the Welch Group say that unless Congress changes laws, Romney's estate could owe at least $90 million as of 2011.

They suggest various ways to cut that bill, including giving all the money to the family foundation after Mitt and Ann both die.

A smaller bite out of the problem: They could give $24,000 tax-free to each of their grandchildren, soon to number 12, every year.

Thompson's money
Net Worth: $8.1 million

Where he got it
Fred Thompson may be history's best-paid public servant.

He's been a senator, lawyer and lobbyist, but his stint as Arthur Branch, the DA on "Law and Order," and other acting bits playing past and present U.S. Presidents and FBI and CIA directors are what made him wealthy.

In 2006 he took in about $3.6 million for his acting roles, another $3.6 million as a commentator for ABC Radio, plus $1.6 million for making speeches. He collected an additional $200,000 or so from his investments.

Thompson had an early star turn in politics as minority counsel in the Watergate hearings. He got his start in show business playing himself -- a plaintiff's lawyer who helped to expose a bribe-for-clemency scandal at the Tennessee parole board. The story became a book ("Marie" by Peter Maas) and then a movie in 1985.

When he wasn't holding office, Thompson was a lobbyist -- from 1975 to 1993, and then again after leaving the Senate in 2003. He collected $760,000 over the years from Equitas, a British reinsurance company that wanted Congress to limit its contributions to a fund to pay people sickened by asbestos.

To run for President, Thompson had to give up his TV roles, radio gig and lobbying. No wonder he waited until the last minute to declare his candidacy.

Where it goes
Thompson didn't make really big money until he went Hollywood in 2003, so he has only $4 million in assets outside of his homes.

About $825,000 is in retirement plans, the rest in bank accounts. His only liability is a mortgage on his condo.

How he could do better
Thompson is 65, but he should invest "like a 41-year-old," says Cordaro of RegentAtlantic Capital. That's because his wife, ex-political consultant Jeri Kehn, is that age, and the couple have two children.

Cordaro recommends a portfolio of 15 percent bonds, 65 percent stocks and 20 percent in alternative investments.

Another concern: career longevity.

"If this President thing doesn't work out, his acting career may have only a few years left," says Cordaro. "He should be saving most of his income."

Clinton, Edwards, Giuliani | McCain, Obama | Romney, Thompson