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D.C. Dispatches by Derek Wallbank

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    Rep. Walz uses $2,196 from pay hike to pay down national debt

    By Derek Wallbank | Published Tue, Dec 1 2009 5:34 am

    WASHINGTON, D.C. -- At the end of the third quarter, Rep. Tim Walz's office cut the government a check for $2,196 to pay down the national debt. It's something all House offices are allowed to do with any unspent cash from their operating budgets.

    Walz's donation was a small sum, compared with his $299,000 office expenses, but the check stood out among his colleagues as by far the largest donation of its kind. Not that the Minnesota Democrat had much competition — the only other debt-reduction donation came from Alabama Republican Spencer Bachus, who gave $276.

    Walz spokesperson Sara Severs said the money came from his declining a pay increase, which he has done every year since coming to Congress in 2007.

    The donation was revealed in the Statement of Disbursements of the House, a quarterly report published online (PDF) for the first time Monday. Previously, the disbursement reports were published in three massive books that had to be viewed in person.

    As of this writing, the national debt stands at a little over $12 trillion.

    Washington Bureau | Tue, Dec 1 2009 5:34 am | 2 Comments

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    minnpost.com/derekwallbank


    Derek Wallbank is MinnPost's Washington, D.C., correspondent, covering Minnesota's congressional delegation and reporting on developments out of Washington that are important to Minnesota readers. After graduating from Michigan State University, he covered Michigan politics for the Gongwer News Service, a publication aimed at political insiders. Later he became a reporter for the Lansing State Journal, writing about education and politics and founding the Journal's respected politics blog. Most recently he was a researcher and reporter with Congressional Quarterly in Washington, D.C. He can be reached at dwallbank[at]minnpost[dot]com.

    More dispatches by Derek Wallbank