Current Events > Congressmen file class action lawsuit over 'suppressed pay'.

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.politico.com/newsletters/inside-congress/2024/03/11/the-house-gop-eyes-a-new-chance-to-undercut-biden-00146375

A lawsuit recently filed by current and former members of Congress wades fully into one of Capitol Hills most controversial internal issues: how much lawmakers are paid.

Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.), alongside former Reps. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), Thomas M. Davis (R-Va.) and Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.) has filed a lawsuit alleging that their pay was unconstitutionally adjusted when Congress itself repeatedly opted out of annual cost-of-living increases that are provided for under law.

The class action lawsuit alleges that they are suffering the unconstitutional suppression of their member pay, and the former Members continue to suffer the unconstitutional reduction of the retirement pay due them by law.

All three former members filing the suit now work for government relations or lobbying firms and are spotted on Capitol Hill with regularity.

The plaintiffs allege that for 21 years since COLAs were codified, members of Congress have been denied cost-of-living increases in other words, that each time Congress enacted legislation to deny lawmakers COLAs (or in 2008 when President George W Bush suppressed COLAs for federal workers and Congress), that amounted to a violation of the 27th Amendment.

Someone ask these assholes where they stand on raising the federal minimum wage.

Entitled pieces of shit. They should be paid 50 cents per hour until they've made sure mass shootings are a thing of the past in America and every American citizen has the same healthcare that they get.

How much are these lawmakers paid currently, exactly?

Presidents have been stuck at $400K for like 25 years now.
They deserve the increase way before worthless Congress.

https://www.thoughtco.com/presidential-salaries-through-the-years-3368133

darkace77450 posted...

All three former members filing the suit now work for government relations or lobbying firms and are spotted on Capitol Hill with regularity.

I wonder if these clowns would be ok w/ indexing Congressional pay to inflation but also in the same bill forcing Congress critters into a permanent lifetime ban from lobbying activities if they serve in the office, and a ban from owning anything but general index funds for stocks while in office?

I'm guessing no...

Oh hell, they aren't even active... that just makes it worse. They get paid because they were members of congress once upon a time and even that's not good enough for them. I wish I got money for doing nothing.

Get a second job like the average american.

Poor babies.

Voidgolem posted...

How much are these lawmakers paid currently, exactly?

$170,000 a year and fantastic benefits that includes access to the best healthcare on the planet.

darkace77450 posted...

$170,000 a year and fantastic benefits that includes access to the best healthcare on the planet.

More than I do and I live at a level I think constitutes "excessive", got it.

Unless they're like floating a family of 7 on just that 170k they're probably fine.

The class action lawsuit alleges that they are suffering the unconstitutional suppression of their member pay, and the former Members continue to suffer the unconstitutional reduction of the retirement pay due them by law.

Oh yeah, I'm sure they're suffering really bad.

Strider102 posted...

Oh yeah, I'm sure they're suffering really bad.

Shouldn't an investigation of their wealth and finances by the government (the defense, in this case) be mandatory to "substantiate" their claims of financial hardship?
Could be entertaining. If the government lawyers are smart, they'll push for that up front, probably have these plaintiffs dismiss their case immediately, before the charade goes on for long, because *shocked Pikachu* "you mean it'll become public knowledge?"

I'm totally cool with paying them more. That said I also want lobbying bans and bans on trading.