Meyers calls for Congressional pay cuts, pledges fiscal responsibility
Valerie Meyers, a candidate for the Republican nomination for Georgia’s 8th District Congressional seat, has announced that she will commit to a self-imposed pay cut if elected to replace Jim Marshall. Meyers, a Bonaire resident who announced her candidacy in November, says she believes a salary of $52,000 – roughly the median income of citizens of the 8th district – should be the salary of anyone willing to take the office.
“Jim Marshall and his Congressional colleagues have displayed irresponsible spending habits; the most effective way to curb reckless spending is to start sweeping around one’s own doorstep. That means cutting salaries of elected officials, starting right here in middle Georgia,”
One of six announced Republicans contesting for the GOP nomination in July’s primary, Valerie Meyers is an information technology business analyst and technical writer. She recently completed coursework for her master’s degree in international business administration.
A long-time advocate for fiscal responsibility, Meyers believes the best way to stimulate the economy and spur job creation is to reduce government spending and cut taxes.
“Small business owners and entrepreneurs in the private sector are being forced to cut costs and cut salaries. Why should leaders in elected office be exempt from the pinch of the economic recession?”
According to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, House members are salaried $174,000 per year – more than four times the $36,300 the average citizen of the 8th district makes yearly.
Meyers says that such a pay scale is integral to maintaining a form of government by and for the common people: “As an elected official, I will be an employee of the citizens of Georgia’s eighth Congressional district. Why should an employee earn more money than her employer?”
Valerie Meyers is not alone in calling for a Congressional pay cut; Adam Kokesh, a Republican House candidate from New Mexico, is promising a similar cut if elected. Ms. Meyers pledges to caucus with Kokesh and other like-minded leaders to bring about across-the-board pay cuts among all members of Congress and slash operational budgets.
Meyers says she would like to see the money saved returned to taxpayers or used to pay off national debt.
A life-long Republican, Meyers has been endorsed by LibertySlate.com, which aims to elect non-incumbent Republicans to Congress. Valerie Meyers was ranked by LibertySlate as the top 2010 Congressional campaign in the nation.
Her campaign platform can be found at her website, www.valerieforcongress.com
I understand that Lee Ferrell has made a similar pledge in the 2nd District. He is a down to earth and genuine man.
Lee Ferrell is an absolute nutcase. If he is still running, he is a bald-faced liar, as he told me to my face in November that he wasn’t.
In my opinion this is nothing but a stupid political stunt. If she wants to talk about lowering expenses, retirement, etc….. for all of Congress, I would YES, YES, YES, go for it, but a salary of $58k a year for just her is ridiculous! We don’t need a politician that uses political stunts to get their name in the blogs and newspapers. We need someone that is willing to do the hard work for America!
Debra, Valerie’s plan includes joining with other like-minded members of the 112th Congress to do the same thing. There are other first-time candidates making similar pledges, so she’s not alone.
She also plans to introduce legislation to order an audit of offices of Congress members to streamline offices and increase efficiency. For instance, Jim Marshall operates four fully-staffed offices: three in GA, one in Washington. John Barrow in GA-12 has five fully-staffed offices. There’s no need for this in an era of technology and telecommuting. She also plans to call for limitations on the Congressional franking privilege and would like to see Congress convene less often to reduce taxpayer-subsidized travel expenses.
And, of course, she has a plan to cut wasteful and needless government spending on obsolete and pointless bureaucracies like the U.S. Department of Education, NASA, Department of Energy, etc.
I’ve overheard Ferrell asking folks to be on his “committee to elect”, so it does look like he’s going to throw his hat back into the ring. However, this was only a week or so ago, so he may have easily changed his mind since November.
He is driving around with a “Lee Ferrell for Congress” sign on his car and word on the street is that Bishop’s poll back in December showed Lee’s name recognition in the 60% range while the other 3 purported candidates were in single digits
Believe me, I’m 100% behind less government spending, but let’s be real. A Congressman only making $58k a yr is ridiculous! Don’t think the rest of us are to stupid to see the forrest for the trees.