Rep. Patrick McHenry has called for an increase in the $174,000 salary for Congress members, arguing that competitive wages are necessary to attract top talent to Washington and ensure effective legislators.
However, his past opposition to raising the federal minimum wage has led to criticism and accusations of hypocrisy.
“Most of us live on the salary,” McHenry said. “Most of us don’t have wealth.” (Trending: GOP Rep. Mace Clashes Directly With Hunter Biden At Hearing)
“You can’t have the executive branch and the judicial branch on a higher pay scale than Congress,” he said. “That is absurd and really stupid for Congress to disadvantage themselves in this game of checks and balances.”
Congressional members ought to “be able to go toe-to-toe with the people they’re regulating or overseeing in the executive branch,” he said.
“Retiring Republican Rep. Patrick McHenry wants a higher salary for his buddies in Congress but voted against raising the federal minimum wage to $15/hr,” podcaster Brittany Page wrote.
“If you feel your salary hasn’t kept up with inflation, imagine how poor and working-class Americans feel, sweetie.”
The timing of his raise request, amid public scrutiny of Congressional stock trading, has also raised concerns.
“The very wealthy few end up dominating the news because of their personal stock trades when most of us don’t have wealth,” McHenry said.
Despite his assertion that most members of Congress use their wages for living expenses, public perception of Congress’s productivity remains a significant obstacle to public support for wage increases.
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