quote:Forget the minimum wage. Or outsourcing jobs overseas. The labor issue most on the minds of members of Congress yesterday was their own: They will have to work five days a week starting in January.
quote:For lawmakers, it is awful, compared with what they have come to expect. For much of this election year, the legislative week started late Tuesday and ended by Thursday afternoon -- and that was during the relatively few weeks the House wasn't in recess.
Next year, members of the House will be expected in the Capitol for votes each week by 6:30 p.m. Monday and will finish their business about 2 p.m. Friday, Hoyer said.
quote:"Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
poor fella, I'd trade him my 50+ hours 5-6 days a week with 24 hour call in, and no overtime.
For those that have it as a hanging munchkin, note the "could care less"
-------------------- On the crusade to eliminate Moral Asshattery wherever it exists Member: AAMAH Posts: 2940 | From: Michigan | Registered: Feb 2004
| IP: Logged |
Dawn--these three hour work days are killing me!!--Storm
-------------------- Leashes?! We don't need no stinking leashes!! Posts: 4771 | From: The Berkeley of the East Coast: Montgomery County MD | Registered: Mar 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
"Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
*SOB*
Those BASTIGES!!!!!
snap *my husband puts in 75 hour weeks all the time just to barely keep middle class so where is our big pity party* dragonfly
-------------------- "Wolves, dragons and vampires, man. Draw the nut-bars like big ol' nut-bar magnets." ~evilrabbit
(snurched because one of my nutbar family members is all about wolves and another one is all about dragons...)(with apologies to surfcitydogdad) Posts: 2397 | From: Texarkana, TX | Registered: Mar 2006
| IP: Logged |
quote:"Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
Hmmm. OK, so you actively sought a job that requires you to work in a different city, and now you're complaining that you have to be there 4.5 days a week?
Posts: 763 | From: Chicago | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Open Mike Night: "Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
So, let me take note. Expecting Representatives to actually work for their salary ($165,200 annually, by the way) like everyone else is keeping families apart and destroying marriages. Got that. So, following this line of reasoning, if I go to work more than three days a week, I'm destroying my family. Way to go, me! I guess that's why my ex and I split up: both he and I were working more than three days a week. It couldn't have been the verbal abuse and throwing things or even the slapping around. No, no, it was the working for a living that did it.
quote:Originally posted by Bored and Dangerous: . No, no, it was the working for a living that did it.
Yes! How dare you!! You paid a high price for your selfishness!
Dawn--removing tongue from cheek and sending it to the decompression chamber--Storm
-------------------- Leashes?! We don't need no stinking leashes!! Posts: 4771 | From: The Berkeley of the East Coast: Montgomery County MD | Registered: Mar 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
Just to play Devil's Advocate here, a Joel Barkin piece from Huffington Post.
quote: The fact is members of Congress need to be spending MORE time in their districts not less. When I worked for Senator Berine Sanders on the Hill, the issue to me was never that they were working too few days, but rather when they did work they debated and voted only on crap issues like naming post offices and Rightwing wedge issues. Days back in the district for Bernie were not vacation days, they were work days. Bernie would hold town meetings, press conferences, meet with local groups, etc. To my mind, that was just as important if not more important as the work he was doing in DC....
This would be a terrible idea. These guys are already way too disconnected from the people they represent as it is, they certainly don't need to be moving fulltime to DC. If Democrats actually force votes and debates on issues that matter, then there is plenty they can accomplish in a three-day Washington work week.
posted
Just when I thought my ability to be outraged by these idiots had bottomed out, too. When I think of the sacrifices I have had to make for work when my family has suffered for it, yet I don't make nearly the slarary these yo-yos do. And when I leave my job, there won't be any offers fom big lobbying firms, there will be a small pension and what ever scraps of Social Security happen to still exist.
BTW, by my count, if you don't have to be to work until 6:00 p.m. Monday and you get off Friday before 2:00, to me that is still just a 4 day work week.
-------------------- "See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda." -George W. Bush, Greece, N.Y., May 24, 2005 Posts: 382 | From: Wyoming | Registered: Jul 2003
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Cowboy Joe: BTW, by my count, if you don't have to be to work until 6:00 p.m. Monday and you get off Friday before 2:00, to me that is still just a 4 day work week.
In fairness, those 6:30 pm starts don't usually wrap up until 1-2 AM.
Posts: 345 | From: Washington, DC | Registered: Jul 2006
| IP: Logged |
quote: "Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
You know, Mr. Kingston, if you don't feel you're up to the job, you could always retire.
-------------------- Another lifetime I'd have fallen in love with you Swept away by my feelings, ashamed and confused But just now it's enough to be walking with you Let the mystery play as it will! -Lui Collins Posts: 2669 | From: Jouy en Josas, France | Registered: May 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
I wonder how many weeks off they're going to get. If they work longer during the weeks they're in session but still have a lot of weeks off, I don't see it keeping them any more out of touch with the people than they are now. They'll still be getting far more time off than most of us do.
I've thought before that if congress were required to get the same deal as everyone else, we'd suddenly have a lot more holidays and things like that.
Posts: 716 | From: San Antonio, TX | Registered: Jan 2006
| IP: Logged |
posted
I think Rep. Jack Kingston has a point (as in the points raised in the post by Keokuk), but to then say the Democrats hate families or marriage... THAT is a bit much.
-------------------- And now for something completely different... Posts: 4164 | From: Alabama | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
Especially since there's no reason why Kingston couldn't move his family to DC to be with him. No doubt he prefers that they stay in Georgia to make some silly point about how much he hates DC.
-------------------- Another lifetime I'd have fallen in love with you Swept away by my feelings, ashamed and confused But just now it's enough to be walking with you Let the mystery play as it will! -Lui Collins Posts: 2669 | From: Jouy en Josas, France | Registered: May 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
Oh man this makes me angry. I'm sure there are many excellent reasons for Congresspeople to have the hours they once had, but to say that it's bad for their families just irks me so much. And that it's Democrats who don't care about families. If Republicans truly think working too many hours tears families apart maybe they could do something about all those families where the heads of household have to work two jobs or work more than 40 hours a week just to stay afloat.
-------------------- Officially Heartless Posts: 3065 | From: The Montgomery County of the West Coast- Berkeley, CA | Registered: Nov 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
In a lot of ways, they seem to be in a damned if you do/damned if you don’t situation. There was a Congressional campaign in New Jersey a few years ago when a challenger attacked the incumbent because he bought a house in Bethesda, moved his family there, and enrolled his kids in school there. The challenger accused him of falling out of touch with his district and becoming a dreaded Washington insider. In the context of this article, people would tend to think that the incumbent was in the right and working hard in Washington, but in a different context, voters will get angry and think that they have someone who has gotten too consumed with being a member of Congress.
Yet at the same time, when members want to adjust the schedule so that they can have more time back in their districts to meet with constituents and local officials who have individual issues to discuss (as opposed to lobbyist after lobbyist after lobbyist while they’re in DC), and to spend time with their families, they get accused of not working enough.
I’m not saying that either position is right or wrong. It just seems people will walk away hating Congress no matter how this is handled.
Posts: 345 | From: Washington, DC | Registered: Jul 2006
| IP: Logged |
quote:"Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
This must only be true for rich families, because as we know there is no need to give aid to poor families who are working three or more jobs to pay the bills, the invisible hand of the market will sort all that out..
Honestly, can politicians ever argue a point without turning it into a hot button emotional manipulation-o-thon?
-------------------- "All people are responsible for the good that they didn't do" Posts: 4774 | From: Virginia | Registered: Feb 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
I heard an interview with some congressman. I'm sorry can't remember who - it was someone who had been around a while. He talked about how they used to have a full work week in Washington and lamented that it really is the fundraising and campaigning that have taken over their time.
There has got to be more perspective here than what has happened for the last few years or so.
Posts: 1168 | From: Missouri | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
So, the members of Congress have to spend weekends getting in touch with their constituents. Somehow, I'm not too broken up about that
-------------------- Nico Sasha In between my father's fields;And the citadels of the rule; Lies a no-man's land which I must cross; To find my stolen jewel. Posts: 4912 | From: VA | Registered: Jul 2003
| IP: Logged |
Rhiandmoi
Ding Dong! Merrily on High Definition TV
posted
I think they should work 2 weeks in DC 1 week in their home state. Or some kind of rotation like that where they could get things done, but still have time in their home states. I wouldn't want to call their week at home time off, because I would expect them to keep office hours and to have meetings.
quote:Originally posted by Mad Jay: So, the members of Congress have to spend weekends getting in touch with their constituents. Somehow, I'm not too broken up about that
Why not? Is it because they make so much money? I think that even Congresspeople deserve weekends with their families where they can think about work as little as possible.
-------------------- I think that hyperbole is the single greatest factor contributing to the decline of society. - My friend Pat.
quote:Originally posted by Rhiandmoi: I think they should work 2 weeks in DC 1 week in their home state. Or some kind of rotation like that where they could get things done, but still have time in their home states. I wouldn't want to call their week at home time off, because I would expect them to keep office hours and to have meetings.
quote:Originally posted by Mad Jay: So, the members of Congress have to spend weekends getting in touch with their constituents. Somehow, I'm not too broken up about that
Why not? Is it because they make so much money? I think that even Congresspeople deserve weekends with their families where they can think about work as little as possible.
Yes, in an ideal world, everyone deserves a weekend with their families. However,
quote: Hoyer and other Democratic leaders say they are trying to repair the image of Congress, which was so anemic this year it could not meet a basic duty: to approve spending bills that fund government.
I don't meet my weekly goals at work, I have to work weekends. Hell, even if something is dropped on my plate on Friday, I try to complete it on weekends.
Members of Congress don't meet their goals, they should be working weekends too. That's just good work ethic. Complaining about having to work more to complete a task that they had agreed to do is stupid. Either say that you or not going to do it before hand, or get it done. Don't NFBSKing whine after you don't do your job
-------------------- Nico Sasha In between my father's fields;And the citadels of the rule; Lies a no-man's land which I must cross; To find my stolen jewel. Posts: 4912 | From: VA | Registered: Jul 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
I think Aud's comment is a really good one. There are other things on congresspeople's plates besides debating legislation, spending time with family, and getting to know their constituency. Maybe if they could reduce the amount of time they spend being courted by lobbyists, fundraising and campaigning, they would have plenty of time for their families.
-------------------- Officially Heartless Posts: 3065 | From: The Montgomery County of the West Coast- Berkeley, CA | Registered: Nov 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Cowboy Joe: BTW, by my count, if you don't have to be to work until 6:00 p.m. Monday and you get off Friday before 2:00, to me that is still just a 4 day work week.
In fairness, those 6:30 pm starts don't usually wrap up until 1-2 AM.
I stand corrected. Still though, expecting at least a 40 hour week should be the minimum expectation. I know that much of their work is done outside the actual chambers. But that is true for a host of other occupations without the perks enjoyed by public servants in Washington.
-------------------- "See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda." -George W. Bush, Greece, N.Y., May 24, 2005 Posts: 382 | From: Wyoming | Registered: Jul 2003
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by ThistleSoftware: If Republicans truly think working too many hours tears families apart maybe they could do something about all those families where the heads of household have to work two jobs or work more than 40 hours a week just to stay afloat.
If you say that to someone of Jack Kingston's political stripe, you're likely to be told the problem is that liberals raised taxes too high so that women had to abandon "their essential natures as women" (as Marilyn Quayle put it once) and get jobs just to pay those eeeeevil taxes. If only we would cut taxes on the rich, see, women could go back home and be supported by hubby as Jesus intended, and everyone would have plenty of money on from his sole income.
You think I'm joking. I'm not. Trent Lott inserted all sorts of language like that into a gender pay equity bill when it crossed his desk several years ago. You can also expect to hear that sort of thing on C-SPAN rather often.
Also, Aud is right, the three-day work week is not the way things have always been in DC. It's a product of the 1994 Republicans, who have always argued that it's family friendly for members. And I suppose it is, but if you take a job - especially a job for which the competition is so fierce - you really ought to do it even if it does mean working five days a week. Not to mention that those self-same members of Congress fought tooth and nail against family and medical leave, bans on "drive through deliveries", minimum wage increases, and just about any kind of worker protection legislation.
-------------------- Another lifetime I'd have fallen in love with you Swept away by my feelings, ashamed and confused But just now it's enough to be walking with you Let the mystery play as it will! -Lui Collins Posts: 2669 | From: Jouy en Josas, France | Registered: May 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:The fact is members of Congress need to be spending MORE time in their districts not less.
Perhaps they could do just that, by working 5-day weeks during the, let's say, four or five months they need to get the business of the federal government finished. In by January, out by June. Connect with your district for the rest of the year.
Posts: 389 | From: Anchorage, AK | Registered: Aug 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:"Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."
Considering that I'm going to be away from my family for an entire year in Iraq, I really don't have much sympathy.
-------------------- Meanwhile, at stately Wayne Manor... Posts: 1316 | From: Oregon | Registered: Sep 2003
| IP: Logged |
posted
I'm too lazy to check the specific details, but the Australian Parliament sits for a set period of time each year. During that time, the federal politicians are pretty much 100% at the capital. Once parliament is out, they go back to their respective constituencies.
Anyway, they get paid $165,200 annually? I'm a firm believer that at least a fair portion of one's pay is compensation for the effort you've put in. Getting paid that much suggests not only working 10+ hours a day but also frequently on weekends as well. If you can't deal with that kind of high-demand lifestyle then you get a lower paying job elsewhere.
-------------------- "victory thru self-deception" Posts: 2211 | From: Western Australia | Registered: Jun 2005
| IP: Logged |
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
Those poor Congressmen!! 
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
