When the Going Gets Tough...

...Congress goes shopping--literally. With a government shutdown looming, Florida Democratic Congresswoman Corrine Brown is organizing a "boutique shopping trip." Go figure. As The Hill reports:

With a government shutdown looming, Capitol Hill was a pretty serious place on Wednesday afternoon.

But for Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.), what better way to ease the tension than with a congressional ladies personal shopping trip in Arlington, Va.?

According to an email from Brown’s scheduler titled, “Outing with Congresswoman Corrine Brown,” staff member Cathy Gass invited Brown’s fellow female Congressional Black Caucus members to join the lawmaker at a boutique in Crystal City, Va. on Wednesday afternoon.

According to the email, which was addressed to “CBC Schedulers,” Brown “would like to invite the woman [sic] CBC Members to go shopping with her at Daniel’s Boutique this afternoon after votes.

Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Now, with America on the brink of financial disaster, Ms. Brown thinks its a great time to whip out the plastic and hit the trendy shops in Crystal City.

Of course, given Congresswoman Brown's long history as a financial deadbeat, you've got to be wondering who is paying for her shopping spree. On the other hand, if she were actually in her office on Capitol Hill, Ms. Brown would probably be working on a bill to confiscate more of your tax dollars for her pet projects.

Maybe that shopping trip isn't such a bad idea--but then again, we'll wind up paying for it, one way or the other.