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Honestly, I think there are times when we need reps to make unpopular decisions that are in the long term public interest.  
It’s a really bad idea in my mind to put more weight on following the whims of public approval.
No. Most politicians have a lot of travel and housing expenses that aren’t accounted for in stipends. Lowering their salary will further ensure that only the independently wealthy can serve in office as the salary is a mere drop in the bucket for them. What we need to do is overturn Citizens United as another commenter mentioned.