Posted on 12/08/2001 8:52:29 AM PST by Bad~Rodeo
WASHINGTON (AP) - Members of Congress are on their way to a $4,900 pay raise in January as the Senate used a midnight vote to thwart lawmakers who tried to block it.
After a debate that lasted five minutes late Friday night, the Senate used a 65-33 procedural vote to defeat an effort by Sens. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., to stop the increase from taking effect. Under a 1989 law, legislators get an annual cost-of-living raise unless the House and Senate vote to block it, a mechanism that often lets the increases take effect with little notice. .
The latest boost is for 3.4 percent and will raise members' annual salaries to $150,000. .
Feingold questioned the timing of a congressional pay boost when "our economy is in a recession and hundreds of thousands of workers have been laid off." He also noted that the string of four straight budget surpluses is now expected to end. .
Fourteen of the 30 senators running for re-election next year voted against the pay raise. Two who will retire in January - Sens. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, and Strom Thurmond, R-S.C. - voted for the increase, while a third retiree - Jesse Helms, R-N.C. - did not vote. .
Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., and Minority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., voted not to block the increase. .
The House has already passed legislation opening the door for the pay increase. .
The January increase will be the third congressional pay raise in the last four years. Before this period, lawmakers increased their salaries less frequently, but the political risk faded as the economy boomed and federal surpluses soared in the late 1990s. .
By tradition, the annual spending bill for the Treasury Department is the battleground for congressional pay raises. .
The final version of that bill, which lacked language blocking the pay raise, overwhelmingly passed the House and Senate this fall and was signed into law by President Bush on Nov. 12. .
Feingold was blocked from trying to stop the pay raise earlier this year. The vote Friday came as the Senate debated the defense spending bill. .
Kohl's "nay" vote; how noble of the multi, multi-millionaire. I suppose when ya have that much dough, $5,000 is a drop in the bucket. This guy has got to go, he doesn't do anything for the state of Wisconsin.
Wake up Wisconsin!!!!!!!!!!
Not really they can be replaced if the GOP hiarchy would permit as much that is the source of the GOP unwillingness to deal with it's own corruption or RINO's. Tennessee has several good conservative congressman more deserving to be senators.
One would easilly win due to name recognition and good reputation. That one is Rep. Jimmy Duncan. Another is possibly replacing our RINO governor. That one is Van Hilleary. A third has great experience on DOD issues which is Zack Wamp. I think any one of these three could unseat Fred and Bill. I also think they would get plenty of cross over votes as well.
I'll vote for a good GOP canidate. I voted for Wamp this time. Unfortunately when it came to U.S. Senator this time I did not vote as both choices were pathetic.
Jeffords is out on his book tour.
Uhh Congress is'nt full time. They spend alot of time in recess.
As for Jeffords, he has done a lot of Not Voting . Well, maybe this and one other issue, The Helms Admendment. Just one of those things or is there a reason? Anyone know?
It gives the appearance of not being willing to do without or to make sacrifices. Perhaps it is not a fair expectation, but it is just one more example of our leaders not leading us.
i sure do wish i could vote myself a raise.
bitching to the union doesn't seem to do any damned good.
how about another tax rebate, dubya?
(BTW, what's that stench?)
There's a bill circulating around Congress called the Enumerated Powers Act. This bill, if it became law, would require bill sponsors to cite the section of our Constitution which authorizes or legitimizes their legislation. The Constitution does, after all, specifically set the powers of the federal government, reserving all other power and authority to the people and the states.Now, there's an appropriations bill out there which includes a half-million-dollar allocation for federal research into how to remove the stink from pig poop. Wouldn't you love to see the congressman who put that appropriations request in the hopper cite the section of our Constitution that sets forth removing the stench from pig crap as a legitimate function of the federal government?...
Neil Boortz
July 11, 2001
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