Tim Walberg is one of the most hypocritical politicians I’ve ever had the displeasure to have met. This guy, who claims he “was a tea partier before there was a tea party”, talks a lot about reining in government waste and holding elected officials accountable. Yet he himself is a big part of the problem. He has helped lead the charge in shutting down the government to score political points and wasting our tax dollars with countless votes to kill off the Affordable Care Act.
Here’s what I wrote about him last year at this time:
Back in December of 2010, after he was reelected to Congress after being replaced by Mark Schauer for two years as the Congressman from MI-07, Walberg put on a big show about rejecting the federal health care coverage provided to all members of Congress by the taxpayers of America. In fact, he never took federal health care coverage, even during his first term. Why? Because he has even better health care coverage from the state of Michigan thanks to his 16 years in the state legislature.But that’s not all. In an excellent piece of journalism, Charles Crumm of the Oakland Press uncovered the pensions received by a number of former Michigan legislators who are still serving in office. Tim Walberg, as it turns out, gets a pension check from the state of Michigan for $5,109.11 each month. That’s $61,309.32 a year, paid for by the tax payers of Michigan. Keep in mind, that’s in addition to his annual Congressional salary of $174,000.
It’s a pretty sweet gig when you think about it. Nearly a quarter million dollars in payments a year, all paid for by tax dollars.
His Democratic opponent, former Speaker Tempore of the Michigan House of Representatives Pam Byrnes, has released two new ads. The first, “Real Talk”, calls Walberg out on his hypocrisy regarding pay and perks that he receives:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBBu9apYhzY
The second one, called “Walberg Accountability”, calls for Walberg to be held accountable for his double dipping and highlights the fact that Byrnes voted to end lifetime health care benefits for Michigan legislators during her time in office:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDru_ngnH4E
Byrnes’ campaign released a statement outlining her Government Accountability Agenda:
Pam Byrne’s agenda calls for an immediate 10% pay cut, no pay raise without a balanced budget, an end to luxury perks like first-class airfare and luxury vehicles, and no pay in case of another government shutdown.“Congressman Walberg refuses to have an honest debate or pledge to reform Washington, so we are bringing these issues to the voters,” said Byrnes. “Michigan families are struggling while politicians like Congressman Walberg are living large off the perks of public office. I’ll clean it up to make sure Washington works for Michigan again.”
Here are the specific features of her Government Accountability Agenda:
- Immediate 10% pay cut for members of Congress
- No pay during government shutdowns
- No pay raises unless Congress passes a balanced budget
- No more first class air travel or luxury vehicles
- No more subsidized gyms
- An end to lobbyist loopholes
Read her entire plan HERE.
