535

535 - All in all that really doesn’t seem like a big number right? Yeah, that’s what I thought. More on this shortly.

The other day I was at a finance board meeting for my county. The good news, well there was none. The bad news, after years of a “flat budget” they are now saying that not only will they have to begin making cuts, but they will most likely be facing layoffs. A lot of this has to do with the fact that the state is reneging on its fiscal obligations and failing to pay the county. So as a result, the county has to tighten its fiscal budget and be responsible.

Not so in DC.

535, the total number of Senators and Congressional Representatives, serving We The People. The current salary (2010) for these members of the House and Senate is $174,000 per year. That does not reflect the speaker and majority / minority representatives who are paid more for their lofty positions.

$1,013,162,955, the amount spent in the nine months between June 2009 and March 2010 by the aforementioned 535!!! No, that wasn’t a mistake, that’s over $1 BILLION dollars. This comes from the Members Representational Allowances. This is the fund we provide to these over priced “legislators” to administer their offices. Literally it is their version of your house operating expenses, except on a grandiose level.

Can you say disconnect?

Now, understand that this is only 9 months. $674 million is what the House spent in the last six months of 2009 followed by $339 million in the first three months of 2010. Now considering the dire straits we, the average American Tax Payers, are in, you might wonder what pressing issues could these elected officials be spending so much money on? Glad you asked:

$51.6 million Paid to about 637 chiefs of staff or deputy chiefs of staff.

$4.4 million Paid to about 1,045 interns and pages.

In addition to the salaries above, they also paid out: $34.9M on health insurance, $854K on life insurance and $12.6M on student loan repayments. I guess when you work for the government; you don’t need to pay your own student loans. Nice huh?

I guess when you are this important; you need an entourage to help you make such important decisions on what things to spend OUR tax money on. What decisions you might ask, well here:

$114,925 spent by the Democratic Caucus for its staff to have a getaway for the weekend to the Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg, Va. (Hey, everyone needs a vacation right?)

$362,939 received by (Former) former House Speaker Dennis Hastert to run an office for outstanding affairs from his tenure. (Uhmmmm Newsflash: Hastert hasn't been the speaker since early 2007, or even been in Congress since late 2007, for that matter.)

$5.3 million Spent on computer software (Hey, Assassin’s Creed II for PC was coming out.)

$18 million Spent on computer hardware (Cause what’s the purpose of having a great new program if you have video lag!!)

$7.5 million spent on office supplies (Red Pens and Post-It Notes for all those pesky health care changes?)

$565,373 Spent on carpet. (They only have 540 rooms. Do they re-carpet every year?)

$317,304 Spent on new drapes. (For 550 windows? How do you wear out drapes?)

$2.5 million was spent on furniture. (Uh, Nancy your new armoire is here)

$2.6 million spent on food and beverages (and you thought your food bill was high)

This included:

$604K Spent on bottled water (Really, the US Capitol water supply is that bad?)

$169K Spent on catering. (I hate cooking to. Besides, I bet the restaurant bill would have been Insane………)

$3,061 Spent on Chantilly Donuts (Now you know how they pass all those insane laws, SUGAR RUSH)

$84,794 Spent on coffee (To stay awake and read those several thousand page laws)

$9,450 Spent on Coca-Cola products. (Wonder if they were surprised when they got Soda?)

$22.6 million for postage. (To share with their constituents all the good news in DC)

Over $16 Million on telecommunications services. (And you thought your cell phone bill was high!!)

$11 million spent on newspapers and other resources (To read about all the good they are doing!!)

$5.8 million spent on Web design, e-mail and hosting services. (What, they didn’t have enough money for a dedicated IT staff?)

$9,809 Spent on shredding services (I guess they couldn’t find an intern to do any shredding?)

$12.5M Spent on travel for representatives and staff (I’d want to get away from my constituents as well. But who gets the frequent flyer miles?)

Next time you are clipping coupons and trying to figure out how you are going to make it till the next paycheck, just think about your congressional representative and how they are making it from paycheck to paycheck……. Now, don’t you feel better !!!

November elections, 3 months and counting !!!

Voter Fraud, the new American way ?

I'm taking a new approach. Seems like life has been pushing, pulling and prodding me in so many directions, that I can't seem to find the time to sit down and write at length. This is sad to me because I actually enjoy writing and feel that there is so much out there to actually write about. Let's face it dear readers, this country is not exactly in the best of health.

Growing up, one of my favorite TV shows was Superman. No, not the cartoon, or the movies, the actual TV show. No, not Smallville, go back further, the Original TV Show, in all it's B&W glory (well, color by the 3rd season but you get the point)!!

At the beginning of the show, their was a monologue which ended "....the never ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way!!"

My, how far we have come.

There was a time when I believed that the majority of Americans felt that way. Maybe it was just my own brand of naïveté. Maybe it still is, but it seems to be a fading echo from a once better time.

Today's little gem of happiness come from the land up north. Minnesota to be exact. Minnesota Majority, a conservative watchdog group, just released a report which found that at least 341 convicted felons in largely Democratic Minneapolis-St. Paul voted illegally in the 2008 Senate race. That was the race that pitted former comedian Al Franken, against incumbent Senator Norm Coleman.

Now, whatever your feelings on the individuals or their respective parties, it's got to irk you when there is an apparent attempt to undermine the electoral process which makes this country so great. One would think that it would set off bells and whistles across the board. You'd be wrong. Apparently, there is no interest in this matter at the federal and state levels.

Now, if you are asking why 341 is such a big deal, you'd be right. Statistically, it's not very significant. But consider that the election results were hotly contested and that the final recount vote, determined six months after Election Day, showed Franken beat Coleman by only 312 votes.

Now, as far as Minnesota politics go, I don't know anything about Norm Coleman, and I probably know way too much about Al Franken. I didn't have much care for him as a snobby pseudo intellectual comedian (talk about a minority classification) and after seeing recent coverage of him in the Senate I have even less to say about him.

But this isn't about politics or parties, this is about what we are allowing to happen to this great nation. We have to take a stand on a local level and make our once taciturn voices heard.

If we allow allegations of impropriety to go unheeded, we set the stage for further violations of our way of life.

Personally, I think this matter should be fully investigated by the authorities. If the information provided by this group is fraudulent, then action should be taken against them immediately. However, if it is authentic, then the system is broken and needs to be fixed.

We as American's cannot allow THEM to dictate to US what should and shouldn't be done. That's how we got in this mess. Don't think it can get worse ? Sit back and do nothing and watch. Don't find yourself looking back at 2010 and saying ".........yeah, those were the good times."