Amazing.. While most of the Americans are unemployed or had a pay cut of hours cut, or on furlough, and so on, Congress decides to cut their workweek to 2 1/2 days while this country is in a recession???? Look for head rolls from the American people.
Raw Story:
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) promised after the Democrats won the House in 2006 and then after Obama's election this year that the House would hold longer workweeks. But as the fall of 2009 wanes, the House has taken to starting on Tuesdays at 6:30 pm and adjourning "before the sun goes down" on Thursdays.
That certainly wasn't Hoyer's tune in 2006, when he claimed that congressmembers were going to have to work five days a week.
"I have bad news for you," Hoyer told reporters after the Democrats took over the chamber.
"Those trips you had planned in January, forget 'em. We will be working almost every day in January, starting with the 4th."
The Washington Post blared this headline Dec. 6, 2006: "Culture Shock on Capitol Hill: House to Work 5 Days a Week."
But since the House returned from recess on Sept. 8 of this year, it has stuck around to vote on a Friday just once. For what? Approving an a 5.8 percent increase in Congress' budget.
Republican lawmakers accuse Democrats of hypocrisy, as the liberal party had previously accused conservatives of having lackadaisical work schedules when they were in power. Not everyone is turned off, however.
“Two and a half days a week is plenty of time to consider the ideas coming out of this Democrat-led House,” Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO), once a power-broker for former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX), told Politico. “Imagine the damage they could do with five-day workweeks.”
House Democrats say they're not holding many votes because the legislation they've already passed is backed up in the Senate. The Democrat-led House has already approved climate change "carbon cap" legislation and a plan to reform Americans' healthcare options.
2 comments:
That's ridiculous. Many would love to be employed, and those who are are working all kinds of extra hours for no extra pay because they are competing with others working more for no more pay, because people fear for their jobs.
Hours are being cut every where.
And people are being forced to take furlough days.
Unless Congress is taking a paycut to match the cut in time worked they will get a lot of constituents extremely upset.
Keep in mind is that this is the same Congress that gets an automatic pay raise in the beginning of the year. They just got their increase foir 2009. And now they want to cut the workdays to 2 1/2? You're right. Constituents in every state will raise hell. Both political parties will get earful of complaints and threats of not being re-elected again.
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