Man, when people say that the Dutch are tight, they are not kidding! Check out how Peter Hoekstra, a Republican Congressman from nearby Holland, Michigan lives while in Washington. [taken from a Detroit News article, linked below]
"...said Hoekstra, who ranks among the least wealthy of Michigan's lawmakers. He sleeps in a sleeping bag on his office couch rather than pay pricey Washington rents or mortgages."
I like Mr. Hoekstra's example and I believe all our representatives should be made to live in much more spartan conditions.
I say we reform the way we send folks to Congress and make the process more like the draft or jury duty. Americans are randomly picked and asked to serve a 2-year term. Their salary will be the average of their last 3 years' income. They can have government-provided housing - modest accomodations similar to military barracks. After 2 years they go home and their name is removed from the pool of available candidates.
Anyone would be free to refuse service to the country and no felons or long-term welfare recipients would be asked to serve.
It couldn't possibly be any worse than the system we have now, could it? Is there any more elite, out-of-touch group in America today than the United States Senate? And the House isn't much better.
Yeah, it would be nice, but we'll probably simply end up in a state of increasing lawlessness leading to an eventual anarchy. Then we'll be forced to do something.
The Detroit News: Michigan Has 7 Millionaires in Congress
And here's another little gem I read about this morning regarding Republican Ohio governor Bob Taft, great-grandson of William Howard Taft. He's a lawyer and you might think he would know better.
Ohio Governor Faces Public Reprimand for Ethics Violations
"The misdemeanor ethics charges and the professional complaint stemmed from the governor's failure to report gifts worth nearly $6,000 that he received over four years. The case had spiraled off a scandal over state losses from investments in rare coins."
"Taft, a great-grandson of President and later Chief Justice William Howard Taft, is the first Ohio governor to be charged with a crime while in office. He never considered resigning, but he forced out several staff members in the past for improperly accepting gifts."