Eric W. Brown

If Congressional incentives were corrected first, I have every confidence that both parties would suddenly find new ways to fix the biggest problems facing our people. They just need better motivation; they need to have "some skin in the game" themselves.

Likewise, if Congressional medical benefits were the same as the minimum benefit granted to every American (rather than the preferential treatment they get now that allows them to bump service to our military) there would be real incentive to fix medical care here, too.

If Congressional wages were fixed at 5X the minimum wage, does anyone really believe that the minimum wage would have stagnated even as worker productivity and corporate profits have increased?

If the Democratic-controlled Congress is serious about trying to fix problems in the U.S., how about addressing Congressional incentives? I believe we could fix minimum wage issues quickly if we made Congressional wages linked to them.

It doesn't take an economist to see that part of the problem is that the incentives are all wrong. Our country's minimum wage is just $7.25 per hour, or $290 per week, or $15080 per year. Congresspeople make at least $174,000 per year (not counting benefits).

The situation for the average American has gotten steadily worse for the past several decades regardless of which party has controlled Congress. Before I get a million "but the parties aren't alike" responses, I am not stating that the rate of decline is identical in both cases.