Did You Know...

**Written by Doug Powers

First, click play to set the scene with the appropriate background music…

And then cue the tiny violins:

Now House officials are looking at an additional 8.2 percent cut, or about $100,000. Total cut over three years: nearly 20 percent.

“If it’s a $100,000 reduction in your [allowance] you really need to start preparing for a staff change,” said Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va. “That’s a whole person!”

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., said Congress has had to reduce constituent services because of the sequester. “We’re really starting to see the effects of that in our office,” she said.

The cuts have also affected the quality of life for congressional aides, said Wasserman Schultz, whose defense of Capitol Hill staffers amid budget cuts has won her unofficial den mother status among many. At the hearing, for example, she said prices of meals in House restaurants are getting so high that aides are being “priced out” of a good meal.

What’s happening? The negative economic impact of the disastrous policies of Wasserman-Schultz, Moran and their congressional colleagues aren’t supposed to affect them.

I’m assuming that any suggestions would fall on deaf ears — you know, a side effect of the starvation and all — but an effort has been made:

At the carry-out cafe in the Cannon Office Building, where Wasserman Schultz has her office, you can get an 8oz bowl of Ham and Bean soup for $2. You can buy gourmet sandwiches and wraps for around $5. Both of these are cheaper than I can get at delis down the street from my house.

Her aides could walk across the street to the Longworth Building, which has a large sit-down cafeteria. Today, it is featuring a roasted stuffed Chicken, with asparagus and mashed potatoes, for around $7. Or, one could opt for a heaping 12oz bowl of Chicken Chili for $3.

There is also the tried and true method enjoyed by millions of workers around the country: a brown-bag lunch.

Bipartisan offers of help for Team DWS are pouring in. Via Twitchy: #SaveTheStaffers

There’s also an infomercial calling attention to the inequity:

**Written by Doug Powers

Twitter @ThePowersThatBe