THIS IS A CRISIS THAT CALLS FOR SACRIFICE BY EVERYONE...BUT BELTWAY DEMOCRATS:

Senate Democrats Try to Thwart GOP Move on Pay (AP, 3/10/09)

Senate Democrats are trying to thwart Republican efforts to force a vote on congressional pay raises on a must-pass spending.

Louisiana Republican Sen. David Vitter's amendment to the stopgap legislation would ban congressional pay raises unless lawmakers vote to increase their own salaries. He argues that these automatic salary boosts are inappropriate while the nation is mired in a recession.