It Took 202 Years, 7 months, and 12 Days to Pass This Amendment

The 27th Amendment was submitted for on ratification September 25, 1789. It was not ratified until May 7 ... 1992! That's 202 years, 7 months, and 12 days.

That seems monumentally slow ... and monumentally selfish given that this amendment prohibits any law that increases or decreases the salary of members of Congress from taking effect until the winners of the latest election take office.

Let's be honest folks ... this amendment really prohibits any law that increases salaries from taking effect immediately. Does anyone honestly think Congress would pass a bill that takes money out of their own pockets? Ours ... yes.  Theirs? Not a chance.

Congress is never going to pass a bill that reduces their pay! I don't think anyone ever believed a Congressmen would voluntarily lower their pay ... even back in the wide-eyed innocence of the 1700's.

I guess it took so long to ratify this amendment because no one wanted to vote to delay their pay increase ... because if they lose, they wouldn't see the raise at all ... their opponent would. And if there is anything a greedy politician likes less than losing, it's seeing their opponent make more money than they did.