Members of Congress make $174,000 a year — but they haven't gotten a raise since 2009.

That's despite 15 years of inflation since then.

AOC says that needs to change "if we want working class people" in Congress.

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York has long been vocal about the need for members of Congress to get a pay bump.

As it turns out, Rep. Patrick McHenry — the North Carolina Republican who briefly served as interim speaker of the House in October — agrees with her, recently telling The Dispatch that congressional pay needs to be raised to attract "credible people to run for office."

"I've been saying this for some time," Ocasio-Cortez told BI this week. "I think he's right. I know it's kind of a contrarian position."

The New York congresswoman has argued that a raise is needed both for anticorruption reasons, and to allow a broader group of Americans to seek public office.

A disproportionate share of lawmakers are millionaires — and some many times over.

"If we want working class people who don't rely on independent wealth, to represent people in Congress, we have to make it work," said Ocasio-Cortez, pointing to the need for members of Congress to maintain a residence in both Washington and their home districts.

But she also made clear that she's not just looking out for herself.

"We need to raise the minimum wage, we need to make childcare financially viable, and we need to do that for every American," she said. "We also need to do it in the House."

Since 2009, rank-and-file members of the House and Senate have been paid a $174,000 annual salary, and Congress has blocked cost-of-living adjustments every year since then.

While that's more than 80% of American households make in a year, experts have argued that lawmakers remain underpaid, given both the importance and the unique demands of their job.

If lawmakers' salaries had kept pace with inflation, they would make over $250,000 now.

Yet polling suggests that the public largely opposes a raise for members of Congress, and plenty of lawmakers — including progressives — argue against it.

"People who make great contributions to America don't do it for the money," Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California told BI this week. "I think we can attract talent without the finances."

Read the original article on Business Insider


link: https://news.yahoo.com/aoc-sti...4-000-141701312.html

Hey, bartender!

No. We're paying you more than you're worth already.

Hard pass. They already make significant incomes for barely working through the year.

Corrupt A holes

quote:

While that's more than 80% of American households make in a year, experts have argued that lawmakers remain underpaid, given both the importance and the unique demands of their job.

"Experts"? No doubt leftists. Fucking assholes. Their job has been screwing the people all this time while enriching themselves.

Commies always want to exploit the system for their own gain.

Up until the mid 1850s, Congresscritters received only a per diem allowance, and then only when in actual session. Should still be the same thing, based upon the WasDC per diem rate ($80/day for food and incidentals and no more than $150/day for hotel housing—cheaper for extended stay/rental). NO SALARIES WHATSOEVER!!!!

2bobtanner^^^^^^ I like the way you think...They are supposed to be public servents.... Also they should be limited to the same type of health care terms that the average citizen has to live with..... Also term limits of no more than 2 terms... They are there to serve the public and not line their wallets and leave million or multi-millionaires.. Serve the public or go home.................................... drill sgt.

I’m fine with a cost of living raise equal to the average American but then they cannot invest in individual stocks what so ever. Mutual funds or index funds and that’s it.

Let them keep their pay. I want random drug and alcohol screening. That is if you can pass a rather intense constitution test to get the job.

They should get not more than $100 a day when working. Nothing when they’re not.

This idiot couldn’t make that in the real world unless it was onlyfans. Never mind they basically gerrymander their districts and if they are not idiots they can keep their job forever and get the cushiest pension that most non .gov employed tax cows will never see

Let’s go back to a per diem only.

Almost forgot to mention the insider trading laws dont apply to them.

Wait a minute, you're screaming because $15/hr isn't a wage for working class people. Wouldn't $174,000/yr be a step up?

Your estimated net worth in 2018 was -$8,499 and reportedly had less than $7,000 in savings.

Your current net worth is, according to one article around $13M in assets including:
Salary - $174K
Other Income - $1M
Donations - $840K
Stock Portfolio - $5M

Monthly spends - ($130K)
Taxes paid - ($11K)

It appears only a fraction of her income comes from salary as with most in congress.

https://www.caclubindia.com/we...et-worth-aoc-assets/

There are a lot of sites claiming she has between $30K and $200K, however given how rich people seem to get so fast in congress I tend to believe the above article.

I find it hard to believe someone with a total net worth of $30-200K would have a Tesla S, Mercedes S-Class and a Range Rover Autobiography

are they millionaires because they were elected that way or because as long time elected officials they all are eventually millionaires due to the various ways to profit from the position. Its the later.
But in reality I have no issue with CPI type adjustments for any job. But in this case Congress itself has blocked that.

The best possible indicator of outright corruption in politics is AOC, who did not have a pot to piss in before her election. She thinks 174K is "working class" money? My best year as a cop was 55K.

1. Inflate currency with policy

2. Give yourself raise because of inflation

“Pay peanuts, get monkeys.”

They need a dramatic pay raise.

The current system, clearly, isn’t working.

We should be linking the Representative, Senator, and Presidents pay to the median of Fortune 100 pay.

Not sure what position would correlate to Rep and Sen, but the POTUS should be paid the median of CEO pay for Fortune 100.

Someone will pay the men in those positions pay commiserate with the job. I’d prefer it’s the American people who do so.

Dramatic pay raise tied to the following:

Balanced Federal budget

Public filing of yearly family source of total income statements

Public filing of total assets

Public filing of credit score

Silent

Maybe she should stump for her raise on the street in her district the way she badmouthed the last administration. I’m sure her constituents would love to hear her complain that she’s not making enough money while they starve, can’t afford to drive a car in NYC, and are watching their tax dollars used to house an invading horde.