To Whip Congress Into Shape, Withhold Their Pay

Many lawmakers seem to think they deserve a pay raise.

When House Democrats and Republicans began negotiating a congressional pay increase earlier this month, Democrats seemed to support it, as did some ranking GOP members. Critics then voiced open opposition, and House leaders swiftly pulled the bill—though House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., maintains the raises will eventually pass.

The debate has subsided for the moment, but it raises the question: What have members of Congress done to even remotely deserve a raise?

The Democrat-controlled House Budget Committee, for its part, has failed to release a budget plan this year. The Senate Budget Committee fell short as well, proposing a budget that would cover just five years and that has little chance of receiving a vote.

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