clowns all seem to be saying, "If it ain't white, don't invite".

My bad--the last minimum wage hike was in 1997, not '95.  My point still stands.

   Back in Sept, if I recall correctly, the Senate voted on a hourly wage hike and voted it down.  I think, if they, the Congress, wants a pay raise, then they should first approve an upgrade (and a real one, not some measly 25 cent raise) in the national minimum hourly wage standards.  I have lived in Washington DC on far less than they make and if I can do that, they can, too.  They do not JUST HAVE TO live in the Virginia horse country or up in Bethesda or in some swanky townhouse in Georgetown.
   Just about every other year, the bloody Congress votes itself a raise, while the minimum wage has not substantially changed since 1995.  That's not right.  I don't care about their needing to "pay their kid's tuition".  Many other families across America try to pay for their children's private or parochial school tuitions without the benefit of nearly bi-ennial raises.  I say cap the Congressional pay level for the next 5 years.