Republicans taking control of Congress promise an end to business as usual, and the ice buckets have become a potent symbol of Congressional perks and practices that continue with no apparent justification.

And back home, the Georgia news media have faulted him for driving around Washington in a chauffer-driven limousine even as Republicans called for cuts in Congressional perks.

One of his Congressional perks, free travel, has been curtailed, but not by his House colleagues.

Dr. Coburn, a physician, returns to Congress four years after leaving his House seat because of self-imposed term limits, part of his push against Congressional perks.

He also proposes a balanced budget amendment, term limits for Congressmen, and eliminating Congressional perks and pensions.

Yet Mr. Binder has no patience for Congressional perks that infuriate voters, and has been a more thoughtful lawmaker than his rhetoric would suggest.

That has made the committee a laughingstock even in Washington, awash in scandals over private piggy banks and other Congressional perks.

Still, candidates with an outsider image have an advantage in a year when voters have expressed disgust with Congressional perks and gridlock.

The group also criticized other Congressional perks, such as congressional subsidies for the Capitol Barbershop and Senate Restaurant.

Free Medical Service Any effort to control Congressional perks would have to examine a wide variety of privileges enjoyed by lawmakers and, in some cases, by members of their staffs.