Deprecated: Creation of dynamic property DUP_PRO_Global_Entity::$notices is deprecated in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php on line 244

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/bluehost-wordpress-plugin/vendor/newfold-labs/wp-module-ecommerce/includes/ECommerce.php on line 197

Notice: Function wp_enqueue_script was called incorrectly. Scripts and styles should not be registered or enqueued until the wp_enqueue_scripts, admin_enqueue_scripts, or login_enqueue_scripts hooks. This notice was triggered by the nfd_wpnavbar_setting handle. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 3.3.0.) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6078

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-content/plugins/duplicator-pro/classes/entities/class.json.entity.base.php:244) in /home2/imszdrmy/public_html/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1831
{"id":37274,"date":"2017-07-03T14:07:26","date_gmt":"2017-07-03T19:07:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/?p=37274"},"modified":"2017-07-03T20:21:35","modified_gmt":"2017-07-04T01:21:35","slug":"unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/","title":{"rendered":"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries"},"content":{"rendered":"

Of all people, conservative retired Congressman Jason Chaffetz<\/a> (R-UT) tossed out the idea that Members of Congress should be given a monthly housing stipend in the amount of $2,500. As \u201cThe Hill\u201d reported<\/a>, \u201cLawmakers of both parties aren\u2019t endorsing Rep. Jason Chaffetz’s suggestion that they be provided a $30,000-per-year housing stipend \u2014 but also say the outgoing lawmaker has a point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Remember that Chaffetz is the one who said<\/a> with regard to health care reform:<\/p>\n

And, you know what? Americans have choices. And they\u2019ve got to make a choice. So maybe, rather than getting that new iPhone that they just love and they want to go spend hundreds of dollars on, maybe they should invest that in health care. They\u2019ve got to make those decisions themselves.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It seems that he has little regard for those people who are struggling to make ends meet; people who need to choose between a now-necessary smartphone and the basic human right of health care coverage. But he is concerned about the expenses that he and others in Congress have when it comes to finding affordable housing in the pricey Washington, DC area.<\/p>\n

The Hill further reports:<\/p>\n

\u201cLawmakers acknowledge it’s a nonstarter to try to convince the public that a six-figure salary more than double the median American income isn’t enough.\u00a0Rank-and-file lawmakers earn $174,000 annually.\u201d<\/p>\n

$174,000 is an excellent salary for most Americans, but by some definitions<\/a>, it is still below the top range of middle income. It is reasonable for Americans to want representatives who can focus on doing their jobs rather than worrying about making ends meet. Being a Member of Congress often means having two homes, one in their home district or state and the other in the Washington, DC area. The annual salary is high when compared to the median income<\/a> of Americans ($52,000), but it is not high enough that Members and their families do not have to worry about meeting expenses.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Chaffetz\u2019s suggestion can serve as the opening round of a discussion of how much Members of Congress should be paid so that they are without financial worries and are free to focus on doing the \u201cpeople\u2019s business.\u201d<\/p>\n

The flip side of the argument includes factors such as (a) Members of Congress really don\u2019t work that hard [they are scheduled<\/a> to be in session in Washington only 133 days<\/strong> in 2017], and (b) they are not particularly good at their jobs [witness gridlock while the fabric of the New Deal and Great Society is unraveling].<\/p>\n

So, here\u2019s a proposed compromise:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Raise Congressional salaries to $500,000 (and while you\u2019re at it, do the same for the President and other top-ranking officials in both the executive and judicial branches of government). In the larger scheme of things, this won\u2019t cost much and it will probably result in savings because it will cut down on government mismanagement, waste and fraud.<\/li>\n
  2. In order to justify these raises:\n
      \n
    1. Congress pass legislation ensuring that all Americans receive the quality of affordable and comprehensive health care that they do. This means Medicare for All.<\/li>\n
    2. Congress initiate a constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court\u2019s Citizens United<\/a> ruling and follow that with comprehensive campaign finance reform which puts in place exclusive public financing for all federal elections.<\/li>\n
    3. Relieved of the time constraints of fund-raising, Members of Congress must work at least 200 days per calendar year. This includes extensive committee work, and no bill with a cost of $2 billion or more can be considered on the floor of a chamber without proper open committee hearings (exactly what Republicans have not done in either the House or the Senate with the \u201crepeal and replace\u201d bills on health care.).<\/li>\n
    4. There be a life-time ban on Members of Congress and members of their families being paid lobbyists. There are plenty of other less-sleazy ways for former Members to cash in following their tenures in Congress.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      It\u2019s a \u201chot rail;\u201d a \u201cthird rail of politics\u201d for Members of Congress to suggest raising their pay. But truth be told, when they are doing their jobs, they deserve far more money than they currently are legally making. But the pay increases must come hand-in-hand with reform that will save money and bring about more responsible government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Of all people, conservative retired Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) tossed out the idea that Members of Congress should be given a monthly housing stipend<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37276,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,661,1683,1868,273,113,16,573],"tags":[3042,604,3043],"yoast_head":"\nDo the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries - Occasional Planet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries - Occasional Planet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Of all people, conservative retired Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) tossed out the idea that Members of Congress should be given a monthly housing stipend\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Occasional Planet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Occasional-Planet-325800656245\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-07-03T19:07:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-07-04T01:21:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1273\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"686\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Arthur Lieber\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Occas_Planet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Occas_Planet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Arthur Lieber\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/\",\"name\":\"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries - Occasional Planet\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-07-03T19:07:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-07-04T01:21:35+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#\/schema\/person\/30209aa479bd5ded74238d2ba4fc550f\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1\",\"width\":1273,\"height\":686,\"caption\":\"Jason Chaffetz\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/\",\"name\":\"Occasional Planet\",\"description\":\"Progressive Voices Speaking Out\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#\/schema\/person\/30209aa479bd5ded74238d2ba4fc550f\",\"name\":\"Arthur Lieber\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ddbe1ebe31b3b8d3169935b60845e398?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ddbe1ebe31b3b8d3169935b60845e398?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Arthur Lieber\"},\"description\":\"Since 1969, Arthur Lieber has been teaching and working in non-profit educational organizations. His focus has been on promoting critical, creative, and enjoyable learning for students in informal settings. In the 2010 mid-term elections, he was the Democratic nominee for US Congress from Missouri\u2019s 2nd Congressional District.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/author\/arthur-lieber\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries - Occasional Planet","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries - Occasional Planet","og_description":"Of all people, conservative retired Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) tossed out the idea that Members of Congress should be given a monthly housing stipend","og_url":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/","og_site_name":"Occasional Planet","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Occasional-Planet-325800656245\/","article_published_time":"2017-07-03T19:07:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2017-07-04T01:21:35+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1273,"height":686,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Arthur Lieber","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Occas_Planet","twitter_site":"@Occas_Planet","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Arthur Lieber","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/","url":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/","name":"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries - Occasional Planet","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1","datePublished":"2017-07-03T19:07:26+00:00","dateModified":"2017-07-04T01:21:35+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#\/schema\/person\/30209aa479bd5ded74238d2ba4fc550f"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1","width":1273,"height":686,"caption":"Jason Chaffetz"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/2017\/07\/03\/unthinkable-double-triple-congressional-salaries\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Do the unthinkable: double, triple Congressional Salaries"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#website","url":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/","name":"Occasional Planet","description":"Progressive Voices Speaking Out","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#\/schema\/person\/30209aa479bd5ded74238d2ba4fc550f","name":"Arthur Lieber","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/ims.zdr.mybluehost.me\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ddbe1ebe31b3b8d3169935b60845e398?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ddbe1ebe31b3b8d3169935b60845e398?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Arthur Lieber"},"description":"Since 1969, Arthur Lieber has been teaching and working in non-profit educational organizations. His focus has been on promoting critical, creative, and enjoyable learning for students in informal settings. In the 2010 mid-term elections, he was the Democratic nominee for US Congress from Missouri\u2019s 2nd Congressional District.","url":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/author\/arthur-lieber\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Chaffetz.png?fit=1273%2C686&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37274"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37274"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37274\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37278,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37274\/revisions\/37278"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37276"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occasionalplanet.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}