In a speech on the Senate floor Thursday, Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE) blasted an

amendment to the Tax Extenders bill that would have frozen pay for all

non-military federal employees, as well as capped hiring across the federal

government. The amendment, defeated in a procedural vote of 57-41, is the

latest in what Kaufman described as a series of "baseless attacks" on federal

workers.

The effect of this amendment on our government's ability to address serious

issues we face "would be disastrous," said Kaufman. "Federal employees continue

to serve unfortunately to some as a convenient scapegoat. At a moment when we

are faced with a difficult choice about how to reduce our deficit and get our

economy moving again, this amendment represents an easy cop-out," he

continued.  The amendment "assigns blame and does not really address the

budgetary problems we face."

Senator John Thune (R-SD), who proposed the amendment to freeze pay of

federal employees, said it "was a common sense step toward restoring fiscal

sanity to our nation's runaway spending and ballooning deficit. The defeat of my

amendment was a missed opportunity for Congress to prove they are serious about

tackling our dangerous spending habits and $13 trillion national debt. This

amendment would have lowered taxes for families and small businesses as they

struggle through these challenging times."

Rebutting the argument that federal employees are paid higher on average than

their private sector counterparts, Kaufman highlighted in his speech several of

those he has honored as part of his "Great Federal Employee Initiative," citing

the pay cuts many have taken in order to work in government. 

The Federal Salary Council reported in October 2009 that federal employees

made an average of 26% less in 2009 than those working in comparable private

sector jobs.

In recent weeks, both the House and Senate have rejected other efforts to freeze the pay of federal civilian workers.