Like pigs to slop

Unemployment is now at 9.5 percent, a 26 year high. Another 467,000 people lost their jobs in June. But dang, it's good to be a politician. Free vacations and world travel. The American work force is the gift that keeps on giving.

Rep. Charles Rangel exhausted from spending your money.

Last year, right after Americans were losing their retirements in the Stock Market melt down, Congress made sure to give themselves a $4,700 pay increase. Watching your constituents going bankrupt and losing their jobs is tough work.
And, just to sweeten the pot, the Pelosi-Reed Congress gave each lawmaker an extra $93,000 in petty cash. EACH LAWMAKER. Yep, that's about the amount of cash I keep in my wallet for dinner and stuff.
Then, exhausted from reaching into the cookie jar, the most ethical Congress ever increased spending on themselves by 11 percent in March. Their budget, spent on themselves, received a higher boost in spending than what they approved for domestic programs.
In other words, in a choice between you and them, it's always them.

This, of course, does not include their $175,000 annual salary for a three-day work week.

Last week, in the midst of all this spending on themselves, they increased their office budgets by another 7 percent.

“The demands on member offices have increased dramatically during our nation’s current financial crisis,

All those lousy Americans losing their jobs are wanting results. Lousy Americans.

and staff have been called on to work harder

Like four whole days.

and smarter

Like having staff lunches catered in.

to ensure that we are meeting those growing needs,” Rep. Robert Brady (D-Pa.), chairman of the Committee on House Administration, said in a statement provided to POLITICO.

Because needy people will never need as much as needy politicians.

An office’s budget — called the Member’s Representational Allowance — is meant to cover the day-to-day costs of running a congressional office: staff payroll, travel expenses, rent for district offices and the like. The average MRA for 2009 is nearly $1.5 million, up almost $100,000 over 2008.

Americans aren't making as much money. And that is going to cost...Americans.

But hold on, that's not all. Exciting news released just this week. Congress has also won....FREE TRAVEL!

Spending by lawmakers on taxpayer-financed trips abroad has risen sharply in recent years, a Wall Street Journal analysis of travel records shows, involving everything from war-zone visits to trips to exotic spots such as the Galápagos Islands.

The spending on overseas travel is up almost tenfold since 1995, and has nearly tripled since 2001, according to the Journal analysis of 60,000 travel records.

Hundreds of lawmakers traveled overseas in 2008 at a cost of about $13 million. That's a 50% jump since Democrats took control of Congress two years ago.

Being a public servant is the sweet life. Being the public sucks.