Congress Will Support Live/Work Balance For All. Right? Um..

Elana Levin

Congress Will Support Live/Work Balance For All. Right? Um..

Today's Washington Post leads with an article on how Congress will now have to work 5 days a week starting in January.

"Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says."

You know I'm glad that Rep. Kingston said this. His desire to have a live/work balance for himself must mean that he has now decided to support legislation giving all workers a better live/work balance and paid sick days, right? He must want to protect the Family Medical Leave Act, universal low-cost preschool, paid vacation days, the right for all workers to unionize so they can reclaim the 8 hour day, and other legislation desperately needed to help America's families have the same quality of life and strong family ties that he wants to have.

So it makes me wonder why truly pro-family legislation didn't get passed by the outgoing Congress. Sure, they weren't working a 5 day week but within the time they were on the floor, you'd think they could have gotten something through for American workers. Right?
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Great related post by Matt on Left in the West

Comments

there are so many reasons to despise twits like kingston. the hypocrisy is what really leaps out though. they've had forever to produce for working families and they've done nothing. not a damn thing. after watching pinheads like kingston for the last few years i've learned that he and his ilk couldn't possibly care less about the concerns of, ya know, actual families. b-team backbenchers like kingston don't know the first thing about the very real issues facing working families, families who have to have three and four paychecks to make ends meet, to pay for health care, child care, college and things like gas for the two cars they need to pull all this off.

yeah, jack, families do suffer. but, spare me your sudden concern for "families" when you are faced with actually having to work a normal schedule like the rest of the nation. do us all a favor and punch the damn clock 5 days like everybody else.

Lipris, your comment reminds me of Sunlight Network's Punch Card Campaign. http://www.sunlightnetwork.com/punchclock

I can totally see The Albany Project doing something like that. Not that you don't have your hands full already.

i'm a huge fan of the punchclock campaign and of the sunlight foundation in general. in fact, i cited the punchclock campaign when i announced our No Reform?, No Raise! campaign.