A Job That's On the Line

A JOB THAT'S ON THE LINE
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Libby Copeland]
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) thinks it is offensive that some people are paid $10 an hour to stand in line for Congressional hearings. In the morning, well-paid, sharp-suited lobbyists arrive and glide into the Senate hearing rooms, taking choice seats that these people saved for them by waiting all night. Washington has a lot of bizarre practices, and it often takes an outsider to recognize them. Line-standing has been around for 15 years, and by now people on the Hill hardly see it anymore. If the lobbyists want good seats, says Sen McCaskill, let them line up and wait themselves. Public hearings are not concerts at Verizon Center, and everyone should have the same chance of getting a front-row seat. These are public hearings, after all, even if the public doesn't tend to come to these things much, hearings being kind of boring.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/17/AR2007101702519.html
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