Outside of rare exceptions like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) during the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearings in 2018, it’s not often we see a member of Congress from either party go full “thug life” out of sheer frustration over media-driven narratives or lines of questioning they think are ridiculous.
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But on Wednesday, we got just that and who would have guessed that Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) would be at the center of it all?
Durbin, who as the Majority Whip is second only to Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in the United States Senate, was taking questions from reporters Wednesday morning when CNN’s Manu Raju asked him about the Congressional pay raise that apparently is included in the stopgap funding bill, a 1,500-page continuing resolution that members reportedly have just three days to read.
READ MORE: Congress Releases Continuing Resolution Ahead of Government Shutdown Deadline
What followed was a pretty epic exchange, especially towards the end when Durbin questioned Raju on what the media gets paid:
Raju: Members are giving themselves a pay raise. Do you guys deserve a pay raise?
Durbin: Well, that’s news to me. It’s good news. You know, what is it been ten years or 14 years and no COLA? No change at all. I think it’s about time something’s done.
Raju: You support giving yourselves a pay raise.
Durbin: Well, I don’t know what it is. How would I not know about a pay raise?
Raju: But, I mean, people look at the performance of Congress, say, ‘Why should we give them more money?’
Durbin: What about the media? Think about that for a second.
Raju: We’re not paid by public money.
Durbin: I know you’re not. But I mean, half of your listeners are not there anymore. You’re still getting the same paycheck? What’s going on?
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Watch:
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) DESTROYS CNN’s Manu Raju in response to question on (frankly undeserved) congressional pay raises: “What about the media?…Half of your listeners are not there anymore. Are you still getting the same paycheck? What’s going on?” pic.twitter.com/TdzMYOpdGN
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) December 18, 2024
I think the especially hilarious thing here beyond Durbin’s surprising dunk on the media is that, if you read between the lines, Durbin inadvertently proved Raju’s point in noting that though CNN’s viewership/readership has tanked, Raju and his colleagues are still getting paid the same amount (though admittedly this is not totally an apples to apples comparison since CNN is not taxpayer-supported).
So basically what Durbin was saying in a nutshell was that it doesn’t matter if you’re not doing a good job, you should still be given a big, fat paycheck and automatic raises.
And that’s exactly the arrogant, elitist attitude from some in Congress that goes along the lines of “you owe us no matter what” that turns the American taxpayer off every time pay raises for members of Congress gets brought up, especially at a time when so many people in this country are still struggling to make ends meet after four years of Bidenomics.
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What was the most concerning part about the exchange, however, was learning that the second highest-ranking member of the Senate does not even know what’s in this bill. This is a point that Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) and other concerned fiscal conservatives in the House and Senate will no doubt be bringing up as the debate over the funding bill rages on.
We’ll keep you posted on the latest developments.
