Right now, we have some government employees who are sitting at home, and we have others who are actually working but still will not receive a paycheck as long as the current shutdown continues.
If those individuals are feeling the pinch, Rep. Greg Murphy (R-MD) believes that members of Congress should not receive a paycheck either until the shutdown is over.
When Democrats were asked about supporting Murphy’s request, it was rather funny to hear them push back concerning their own paychecks, all while they have no problems holding out in a way that will keep salaries from tens of thousands of government workers.
Murphy was quick to suggest that, as employees of the government, members of Congress should not receive a check, at this time, stating, "No member of Congress should be paid while the American people are forced to endure the serious consequences of the Democrats’ willful negligence and political games.”
He continued, "We are elected to represent our constituents and put our country before party. Democrats shut down the government by voting against a clean continuing resolution at the same funding levels passed back in March, for political reasons. Their wishlist includes $1.5 trillion in new spending, including giving free healthcare to illegal aliens while destroying Republican efforts to help rural health care for American citizens.”
Murphy concluded, “Further, they want the American public to subsidize insurance company profits. We simply cannot stand for this nonsense. Yet, as long as the nation must put up with their willful negligence, I will not accept a dime of my salary."
I have long believed that this should be the case during a shutdown, but Democrats were not so quick to support this notion.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) did his typical song and dance around the question when he was asked about the propriety of taking a paycheck.
He responded, “First of all, that question is not even a right one because we’re anticipating that this shutdown issue will be resolved well in advance of our next paycheck, which as you all know, members of Congress are paid on a monthly basis.”
Members of Congress make $174,000 per year, while leadership on both sides pulls down a hefty $193,400 per year. The exception is the speaker of the House, who makes $223,500 per year.
Jeffries' statement is a bold one regarding the length of the shutdown because Trump appears ready to hold his line for the long haul, so this deadlock will apparently only be broken if Democrats pull back on their demands for additional healthcare spending.
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) was not so coy, responding, “I’m not wealthy and I have three kids. I would basically be missing, you know, mortgage payments, rent payments, child support. So it’s not feasible, not gonna happen.”
So, while he takes a check, active-duty military, who already make peanuts, will not be getting a check, nor will TSA agents, federal law enforcement, Border Patrol and ICE, postal workers, and corrections officers, all deemed to be necessary workers who have to report to work without getting a paycheck until the shutdown is over.
Now, once a funding bill is passed, they will get back pay if any checks were missed, but that is beside the point for the sake of this argument.
If Gallego, who makes $174,000, is working paycheck to paycheck, what about our troops who are making $35,000 a year and need to pay their bills? This is all posturing by Democrats at a time when a clean bill is on the table and ready to go. Now is not the time to hold out for partisan funding. This will come back to bite Dems, in my opinion.
