Florida Congressman Alcee Hastings said yesterday that his $174,000 annual salary isn't enough -- he wants a raise. Roll Call reports:
Rep. Alcee L. Hastings made the politically tone-deaf case for raising salaries for members of Congress Monday, pointing to the high cost of living in the District of Columbia.
“Members deserve to be paid, staff deserves to be paid and the cost of living here is causing serious problems for people who are not wealthy to serve in this institution,” the Florida Democrat said at a Rules Committee meeting, referring to the average member’s $174,000 annual salary. “We aren’t being paid properly,” he later added.
With a 16% approval rating and an unwillingness to stop the corruption and massive spending to the tune of $19 trillion, the audacity of this Congressman to expect the American people to be sympathetic exemplifies how out of touch those on Capitol Hill truly are.
Voting has proven ineffective -- it’s time to give our federal officials a real wake-up call. A Convention of States, called under Article V of the U.S. Constitution, can propose constitutional amendments that permanently limit the power and jurisdiction of Congress. We’re working all across the country to call such a convention.