*There's* that other shoe!

Call me a cynic, but last week's unexpected late-night decision to repeal the legislative pay-hike (see here) just seemed too good to be true; now it appears that, indeed, it may have been more show than substance, as the two chambers deadlock over differences in their bills.

Senate President Pro Tempore Robert C. Jubelirer (R., Blair) has said he believes the House version is a "poison pill" meant to ensure that the entire bill is thrown out by the courts.

House Republicans have countered that the Senate's version was designed to ensure that Jubelirer's wife, Commonwealth Court Judge Renee Cohn, keeps her raise.

Yeah, those definitely sound like the voices of politicians chastened by public outrage! Note also that neither chamber's version quite fits the model that Rendell said he would sign (leaving judicial salaries intact; the legislature wants to find a way to include those raises in the roll-back). Stay tuned.