by WorldTribune Staff, December 18, 2024 Real World News
The approval rating of Congress has hovered around the 15% mark for several months.
After this week, millions of Americans may likely come to the conclusion that the rating is too high.
Does Congress even deserve that lofty 15% approval rating?As a Christmas gift to themselves in a temporary spending bill, or continuing resolution (CR), members of Congress granted themselves a 6% pay raise and exempted themselves from Obamacare.
If the CR is passed, Congress members will get an annual 3.8% pay increase. Currently, rank-and-file House members and senators earn $174,000 annually, and House and Senate leaders earn $193,400.
The CR also contains a provision allowing lawmakers to opt out of Obamacare and enroll in the gold-plated Federal Employee Health Benefits program. For many millions of Americans, Obamacare coverage continues to be plagued with high premiums and deductibles.
House Speaker Mike Johnson defended the CR during an appearance on Fox & Friends, saying passage of the bill would “clear the decks” for the incoming Trump administration.
The bill must pass by the end of the week to avoid a partial government shutdown.
President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance said in a statement posted to Truth Social: “Congress is considering a spending bill that would give sweetheart provisions for government censors and for Liz Cheney. The bill would make it easier to hide the records of the corrupt January 6 committee—which accomplished nothing for the American people and hid security failures on that day. This bill would also give Congress a pay increase while many Americans are struggling this Christmas.”
Related: Satire — Obama cared? December 18, 2024
It is far from the “clean” CR that many lawmakers had hoped to see.
“I had hoped to see @SpeakerJohnson grow a spine, but this bill full of pork shows he is a weak, weak man,” Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul wrote in a Wednesday post to X.
“There are some big existing pay-fors and I think they should be forced to decide: Do you want to help the people in Asheville or do you want to help green-energy companies, multimillion-dollar companies with subsidies for green energy? There’s about $4 billion out there in that,” Paul said in a previous statement to The Hill.
Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville told Fox News: “Merry Christmas, American taxpayer. We’re going to buy you a Corvette now. You can’t pay for it for 100 years, but we’re going to buy you a Corvette. It’s absolutely ridiculous what we’re doing here.”
Natalie Winters noted on the War Room: “Every time they pass a CR, their rationale is ‘we have to pass the CR now because next time we’re going to get the spending in order.’ Well, that ‘next time’ window has come and gone 35 frickin times and you’ve done nothing about it.”
“This bill should not pass,” President-elect Trump’s government efficiency adviser Elon Musk posted on X.
The over 1,500-page continuing resolution was released late Tuesday night.
(Read the text of the bill in full here.)
“Grow some damn balls Speaker Johnson.”
🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/v35lBYJQMZ
— Natalie Winters (@nataliegwinters) December 17, 2024
TRUMP SAYS HE IS ‘TOTALLY AGAINST’ MIKE JOHNSON BILL.pic.twitter.com/fDCa7Al8V2
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) December 18, 2024
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Congress exempts self from Obamacare, gets pay raise for Christmas added by Editor Two on December 18, 2024
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