Defending the work done members of Congress and their staffs [letter] – LancasterOnline

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“But a company with 600,000 customers would have more than nine employees. … Thus we Americans have struck a remarkable bargain. We pay them $566,220 a year, less than a dollar apiece, for a congressman and his staff, and in return they listen to us carp and moan and fume and gripe and ask to be given things for free. Because this is, in the end, what legislators do. They listen to us. Not an enviable task.” — 1991’s “Parliament of Whores,” by P.J. O’Rourke.
The May 4 LNP | LancasterOnline letter “US House of Representatives should look inward when seeking government waste” insinuated that U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker and other members of Congress should consider closely inspecting their staff sizes and salaries.
I was a congressional staffer for more than 31 years and believe that affords me some perspective.
While I hesitate to defend politicians, Smucker’s salary deserves some clarity. The letter writer is correct that a member who is not in leadership earns $174,000. However, that has not increased since 2009! If inflation were considered, the 2025 salary should be about $270,000. And while no one is forcing Smucker to do so, he works 60-to-80-hour weeks, is constantly in motion, misses many family events, has weekend obligations and is essentially always at work.
So $174,000 is a real bargain. Trust me, you don’t want to be a member of Congress.
As for staff members, Smucker has seven in Washington, D.C., and eight in the congressional district, where the average population is about 761,000, spread over two counties in Smucker’s instance.
The primary job of district staff is what is known as casework. I can assure the letter writer that the thousands and thousands of constituents who had their often difficult problems solved do not consider the staff “wasteful and inefficient.” When eight staff members serve 761,000 constituents, they simply cannot afford to be.
The allowance for staff given to members has dramatically increased recently, due to extremely high turnover — especially in Washington, D.C., where staff make incredibly complex and difficult decisions that directly impact all Americans.
I assure you: No matter what they make, it’s not enough.
Tom Tillett
West Hempfield Township
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