Congressional pay raises

Members of Congress whine constantly about "the rich getting richer" in America. Then they quietly collect an inflated cost-of-living pay raise every year in defiance of the 27th Amendment.

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black.

Last week, Reps. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, and Lee Terry, R-Neb., made a motion to block this year's pay increase, which would boost congressional salaries $4,400 to about $170,000 per year. That motion was killed on a 244-181 vote.

The shameless backers of this pay raise claim seasoned incumbents wouldn't seek re-election without the salary increases. They say the adjustments also prevent Congress from becoming the domain of the uber-wealthy.

What a joke. The power of federal office (not to mention the pension) is to die for. It opens doors that are closed to virtually every other citizen. Members parlay these relationships with the influential into personal wealth.

Even when congressional rascals are tossed from their seats by voters, their experience inside the beltway leads to lucrative lobbying and consulting jobs, regardless of how ineffective and unprincipled they were as representatives.

If American voters decided to cut congressional pay in half, it's doubtful a single member of Congress would abandon ship.

And the notion that an upward tick in inflation warrants a $4,400-per-year raise is insulting. The true cost of living rises the same -- as a dollar amount, not a percentage of annual salary -- for everyone, from the convenience store clerk to the chief executive.

Although members of Congress might have personal chefs and drivers, they pay as much for a loaf of bread and a gallon of gasoline as you do -- and your income probably isn't increasing by $4,400 this year.

Nevada Reps. Shelley Berkley, Jon Porter and Dean Heller all opposed receiving a pay raise this year. That's all well and good, but these votes will be nothing more than political cover when bigger paychecks start flowing into their checking accounts.

For their votes to mean anything at all, Reps. Berkley, Porter and Heller and every other member of the House who voted to keep their salaries the same should return this $4,400 raise to the federal treasury -- at least until they face voters once again.

It's one thing to vote for the right thing. To do the right thing is entirely another.