House members seek pay raise of $4,400

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070628/ap_on_go_co/congress_pay_raise;_ylt=AlNwqSni9_vPMURMuuq7HDHMWM0F

House members seek pay raise of $4,400

By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer 27 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Despite low approval ratings and hard feelings from last year's elections, Democrats and Republicans in the House are reaching out for an approximately $4,400 pay raise that would increase their salaries to almost $170,000.

The cost-of-living raise endorsed Wednesday evening gets lawmakers back on track for automatic pay raises after a fight between the parties last year and again in January killed the pay increase due this year. That was the first interruption of the annual congressional pay boost in seven years.

The blowup came after Democrats last year fulfilled a campaign promise to deny themselves more pay until Congress raised the minimum wage. Delays in the minimum wage bill cost every lawmaker about $3,100 this year.

On a 244-181 vote Wednesday, Democrats and Republicans alike killed a bid by Reps. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, and Lee Terry, R-Neb., to get a direct vote to block the COLA, which is automatically awarded unless lawmakers vote to block it. The Senate has not indicated when it will deal with a similar measure.

As part of an ethics bill in 1989, Congress gave up its ability to accept pay for speeches and made annual cost-of-living pay increases automatic unless the lawmakers voted otherwise.

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:grr:

Are they representing us, as we elected them to do, or are they playing the corporate game of protecting the "bigs" over the little guy?

They are faithless, gutless, disloyal, and tone-deaf. If they get even a penny's raise, they will not have earned it.

TC

got to install microwave ovens...

I'm telling you people, soon they'll be budgeting in gold plates for the cafeteria. $170K per year each plus pensions, healthcare & perks? And they get all this without unions.

Where's the outrage?:puke:

I've got your outrage right here. :outrage:

:grr:

Nobody offered her a $4400 raise. I'm too disabled to work and not disabled enough to get disability. Catch-22. If I earn enough money to pay the bills, then I'm NOT disabled.

that the poorest will have to wait 2 years to see all of. They have also tightened ethics rules and begun to hold a lot of investigations that are potentially devastating to this administration. So yes, they've been doing their jobs.

They haven't been pleasing the public, though, because they allowed the timetable for Iraq withdrawal to be held hostage to the minimum wage increase. This is extremely poor timing, and should have been delayed until September, at least, when we all hope the fight for a strict timetable to withdraw from the GOP's unwinnable war will be non negotiable.

I'm not objecting so much to the increase, which is a reasonably modest one of less than 3%, but their timing. Their timing SUCKS.

$4,400.00 looks like a huge amount of money to folks whose median wage is $37,000.00/year. It's a big chunk of change to folks who are making anywhere in the 5 figure range. I just pointed out the percentage to put it into a little better perspective.

As I said, their timing SUCKS. They would have had much better press had they waited until they were putting up an actual fight to end this war.

Hi, I'm new here. I just wanted to weigh in on this because it is so outragious what some of these politicians make. I believe that elected officials should run for office to serve the people, not to enrich or sustain a lifestyle. Service requires a personal sacrifice and dedication to those served.

It's my opinion that ANY ELECTED official should be paid the median wage for their district plus a differential for and if the median wage for Washington, D.C. area that would equal the average of the median wages of the two areas. They already get tremendous lifetime perks and opportunities for their service so the median wage is more than enough to sustain them and allow them to do their job.

Maybe we should pay them what they're worth; that'd make a big difference.

happened on a state level but i thought i heard that somewhere.

these guys REALLY make.