Radio
Background: “Himself”
King has accepted five pay raises as a member of Congress: Congressman King has accepted $19,300 in pay raises from taxpayers. His salary in 2003 was $154,700. Today, Congressman King earns $174,000. [Congressional Research Service, Salaries of Members of Congress, February 22, 2012]
As a member of Congress, King has enjoyed trips across the globe from private groups: According to Legistorm, King has accepted 31 trips worth $137,113 since taking office. As of 2011, King had taken the most expensive trips out of all the members of Iowa’s Congressional delegation. [Legistorm.com, accessed 6/26/12]
King criticized support for unemployed Americans: Speaking on the House floor, Congressman King said that relief for unemployed Americans was making the United States “a nation of slackers.” [Congressional Record, 9/15/11]
Voted to raise payroll taxes on working Iowans: King opposed a payroll tax cut extension in February. The bill that was passed with strong bipartisan support on a vote of 293-132. [HR 3630, 2/17/12, Roll Call 72]
Criticized asking wealthy Americans to pay their fair share in taxes: Appearing on CNN’s Starting Point, King said asking the wealthy to pay their share of taxes was “class envy” and criticized unemployed Americans for not contributing their “fair share.” [CNN’s Starting Point, 7/10/12]
Background: “Washington”
King has accepted five pay raises as a member of Congress: Congressman King has accepted $19,300 in pay raises from taxpayers. His salary in 2003 was $154,700. Today, Congressman King earns $174,000. [Congressional Research Service, Salaries of Members of Congress, February 22, 2012]
Opposed a bonus for active duty service members that failed by one vote: Congressman King had the opportunity to give active duty service members in Iraq a nd Afghanistan a $1,500 bonus for their service and sacrifice. He chose to vote against this amendment, which was defeated by only one vote. [HR 3289, Vote #554, 10/17/03]
As a member of Congress, King has enjoyed trips across the globe from private groups: According to Legistorm, King has accepted 31 trips worth $137,113 since taking office. As of 2011, King had taken the most expensive trips out of all the members of Iowa’s Congressional delegation. [Legistorm.com, accessed 6/26/12]
Congressman King Voted to Protect Taxpayer-Funded Pensions for Lobbyists: House Republicans voted against a measure that would have prohibited former members of Congress earning more than $1 million as lobbyists from receiving Congressional pensions. The provision would apply to members who retire from Congress after the date of enactment. [H.R. 5652, Vote 246, 5/10/12]
American League of Lobbyists tweeted in support of Congressman King: “@LobbyistsLeague: Three cheers for Congressman Steve King (R-IA): “#Lobbyists do a very effective and useful job on this hill” http://ow.ly/1cKnY” [Twitter.com, 3/1/10]
King has accepted five pay raises as a member of Congress: Congressman King has voted for his own pay increase and has accepted $19,300 in pay raises from taxpayers. His salary in 2003 was $154,700. Today, Congressman King earns $174,000. [Congressional Research Service; Washington Post, 6/28/09; Roll Call 85, 2/25/2009; Roll Call 580, 6/27/2007; Roll Call 261, 6/13/2006; Roll Call 327, 6/28/2005; Roll Call 451, 9/14/2004; Roll Call 463, 9/4/2003]
Voted to protect automatic pay increases for Congress: In February 2009, King voted against a rule that blocked the automatic pay increase. Specifically, the rule would provide for House floor consideration of a bill that would provide fiscal 2009 appropriations for federal departments and agencies covered by nine unfinished fiscal 2009 spending bills. The rule contained self-executing language, that upon adoption, would incorporate a provision to block the automatic cost-of-living adjustment for members of Congress in 2010. [CQ Floor Votes, 2/25/09] The rule was adopted, 398-24. [H Res 184, Vote #85, 2/25/09]
NRCC Chair: “We Should Not Be Getting A Raise In A Time Like This” In 2009, NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions spoke approvingly of the resolution, saying, “I appreciate the fact that we are going to eliminate the pay raise. We should not be getting a raise in a time like this.” [Associated Press, 2/25/09; The Hill, 2/04/10]
Des Moines Register Columnist: “King Stingy, Except For His Own Pay”: In a 2009 column titled, “King stingy, except for his own pay”, Des Moines Register columnist Basu Rekha blasted King for voting to raise his own pay after criticizing other government spending plans: In many of these votes, King has been alone among the Iowa congressional delegation, Republican or Democrat. “Our economy will not recover because people spend more,” he has said. “It will recover because people produce more.” Yet there is one area of government savings King did not support: a freeze on his own pay.
Last week, he broke ranks with other Iowans in Congress and all but 23 members of the U.S. House of Representatives to vote against freezing their own 2010 salaries. The pay-freeze amendment, part of a bill to allow a vote on the omnibus appropriations measure, passed 398 to 24. [Rekha column, Des Moines Register, 3/01/09]
Defended his own pay raise in 2008: In 2008, King defended voting to raise his own pay: “If nobody has enough nerve to vote for a pay raise, we would still be making what the first Congress is making instead of the 110th Congress,” King said also. [Des Moines Register, 8/15/08]
Defended his own pay raise in 2012 when criticized by Vilsack Campaign: In May 2012, King was criticized by the Vilsack Campaign for accepting $19,300 in pay raises. King defended his votes, and said that “he was deserving of a raise.” According to the Des Moines Register: “King defended those votes, saying he was deserving of a raise. He noted actions he took in 2005 that successfully stripped impotence treatments from Medicare coverage, which he said will save taxpayers $3.2 billion over 10 years. (Estimates from the Congressional Budget Office at that time then, however, showed the savings at $2 billion.) [Parentheses in Original] (Des Moines Register, “King Explains His Pay Raises, Trips Abroad and Votes That Contributed to the National Debt,” May 21, 2012)
Opposed a bonus for active duty service members that failed by one vote: Congressman King had the opportunity to give active duty service members in Iraq and Afghanistan a $1,500 bonus for their service and sacrifice. He chose to vote against this amendment, which was defeated by only one vote. He could have made the difference. [HR 3289, Vote #554, 10/17/03]
King has accepted five pay raises, worth $19,300: When King took office in Congress in 2003, he earned $154,700. Today, King earns a Congressional salary of $174,000, an increase of $19,300.
