51.   But handing out large pay raises in the face of layoffs appears limited to the mental health department.

52.   But complaints by critics of a pay raise do not dissuade Don Simon, acting president of Common Cause, a watchdog for ethics in government.

53.   But here in Atlanta, the mayor lurches from one crisis to the next while City Council members worry primarily about getting themselves a pay raise.

54.   But Gingrich helped engineer a congressional pay raise and protected it from political criticism.

55.   But instead the governor attempted to use the pay raises as a bribe to get the Assembly to approve a sweeping charter school bill.

56.   But last week a House Appropriations Committee panel with jurisdiction over White House spending included a future presidential pay raise in its recommendations.

57.   But it is the first sign that for some firms, at least, the recent pay raises may spell trouble.

58.   But sometimes they do so only under pressure, and often added benefits come at the price of smaller pay raises.

59.   But she contended that it would have passed had the mayor not demanded financial sacrifice from the teachers while getting the pay raise for himself.

60.   But the Fed likes to see pay raises only when they are matched by higher productivity on the part of workers and businesses, he said.