While there might be legitimate questions about the workability or financial impact of his idea, U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, R-9th, merits a thumbs-up for having his heart in the right place.

Shuster, whose district includes Blair, Bedford and a number of other nearby counties, has introduced legislation to give homeowners who continue to pay their mortgages on time a $5,000 tax credit.

"It seems to me that Congress is spending all of its time and energy rewarding those who acted irresponsibly," Shuster said. "We must not ignore the vast number of Americans who have played by the rules and lived within their means."

Shuster said his proposal isn't another bailout or taxpayer-backed debt obligation, although it is right to wonder how that money not being in the federal coffers would not add to the nation's debt. However, his plan makes sense in the context of his comment that follows:

"It's a way for hard-working American families to keep more of the money they earn so they can keep acting responsibly and help our economy grow."

He said his proposal would help the eight out of nine homeowners who are paying their bills.

Beyond concerns over the rising deficit, something should be in store for those who did not cause the economic crisis — besides higher taxes.

Gov. Ed Rendell's salary is $174,914.In light of that, it's eye-opening, and a reason for taxpayer dismay, that 73 state legislative staffers were paid more than $100,000 last year. And two staffers made more than Rendell, the state's chief executive.According to an Associated Press report, 40 House staffers made more than $100,000. They included 16 Democratic staffers, 15 Republican staffers and nine working for offices designated as nonpartisan.In the Senate, there were 12 Democratic, 18 Republican and three nonpartisan staffers who earned more than $100,000.Meanwhile, the AP report pointed out, the average Pennsylvania worker's salary is $43,000.According to that report, many of the top earners are lawyers, including Brett Feese, a former Lycoming County lawmaker and currently House Republicans' top lawyer, who was paid $203,459 in 2008. Feese is the highest-paid legislative staffer.Eric Epstein, a Harrisburg activist and founder of RockTheCapital.org, perhaps has the best assessment of the legislative-staffer excessive-pay issue. "Public service denotes sacrifice," Epstein said. "Six-figure salaries for staffers? Where can I sign up for that kind of sacrifice?"

Suddenly, there is hope that excessive spending by Congress is on the radar of some leading politicians — Republicans and Democrats.After a $410 billion spending bill with 8,500 earmarks was pushed through Congress, over the objections of Republicans, there now is evidence that even some Democrats are troubled by the lack of spending restraint reflected in the bill, which contains $7.7 billion in questionable earmark spending.Bothered by the increased spending, Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., said, "Such increases might be appropriate for a nation flush with cash or unconcerned with fiscal prudence, but America is neither."Senate Republicans were able to block the $410 billion bill late on Thursday. And while Republicans were expressing concern about the lack of spending constraint, several Democrats echoed those concerns.It's unclear what changes will be made to the bill before it eventually is passed, but just stopping it for a few days and exposing the questionable spending, by Democrats and Republicans, is helpful in letting millions of financially strapped Americans know what their representatives in Congress are doing.Obama should join those pressing for most of the earmarks to be stripped from the bill.Columnist Maureen Dowd noted in the New York Times that "the Obama spinners insist it was a 'leftover budget.' But Iraq was leftover, too, and the president's trying to end that. This is the first pork-filled budget from a new president who promised to go through the budget 'line-by-line' and cut pork."This spending bill represents an early test for Obama to live up to his campaign promises. Now that the bill has been delayed, he should step forward and vow to veto it unless the waste is removed.Failing to do so will erode the new president's credibility and the extraordinary political capital he earned promising to bring change.