Term Limits...what brought us to this discussion? How about $158,000 salaries? What about a pension that pays them much of that same salarie once out of office. Oh, and did I mention their health care?
We give candidates incentive to run for office for all the wrong reasons. Take away those reasons and flush out the statesmen..you know those ones who run to actually make a difference.
You get a pledge from a prospective candidate to reduce the salary to the median income for white males (48,000); fund their own retirements like the rest of us; and allow them the same pay-in health care coverage as any other normal Joe. If they even flinch or stall, turn the other way and walk.
The beautiful irony here is that we will NEVER find good candidates if the pay is too lucrative and the benefits to good to turn down. Ask yourself this: Who would want to serve office with what I have described? Not the greedy, that is for sure.
Representatives and Senators shall be employees of the State that they represent. Their compensation, salaries and benefits shall be set by the legislature of their state.
This does a couple of things. First, it put them out of the business of setting their own pay and benefits plans. And it moves those decisions a step closer to We The People.
But even more, it reminds them who they are supposed to be representing. It doesn’t undo the 17th amendment, but it still gives a little reminder with the paycheck or direct deposit stub that "Hey, you work for us back home."
| From the desk of cc2k: |