No budget, no pay

The U.S. Senate has had a hard time getting anything done lately.

Of course, some might argue that's a good thing.

But the fact remains that even basic tasks, such as passing a budget blueprint, have fallen victim to squabbling.

For instance, under Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., the upper chamber hasn't passed a budget in more than two years.

Nor was it much better when Republicans ran the Senate. No budget resolution emerged in 1998, 2004 or 2006.

This was unusual prior to the Clinton era. Not once between 1975 and 1998 did the Senate fail to OK a spending plan.

Now comes Sen. Dean Heller, the Nevada Republican just recently sworn in as a replacement to scandal-ridden John Ensign. The newcomer this week put forth a "no budget, no salary" proposal, under which lawmakers would forfeit their salaries if they failed to finalize a budget by the beginning of any fiscal year. Nor would they be reimbursed for retroactive pay if a deal was eventually reached down the road.

"If Congress doesn't do its job, its members shouldn't get paid," Sen. Heller argues.

Makes sense.

Make no mistake, though: Just as Congress has rigged the game to ensure members receive automatic pay hikes each year without a vote, you can bet they'd find some loophole to keep the paychecks coming.

It would be fun to watch them scurry for a bit, though.

Alas, in the end, Sen. Reid used a parliamentary procedure on Monday to block the measure.

How fitting.