If you didn’t have an “it’s Monday, I hate everything” moment yesterday, be prepared for a full day of headdesking and, well, hating everything: in 97 percent of congressional districts (423 out of 435 districts), the median annual income for females is less than that of their male counterparts.

Here at The Jane Dough, we talk a lot about the gender pay gap — that’s because it’s a persistent, undeniable problem. But what about those rare few jobs in which women out-earn the guys? Yes, they do exist.

Not to present huge generalizations here, but (usually) you can fairly draw the gender pay gap debate by party lines: The Democrats believe women are paid less than men and unfairly so. The Republicans believe gender pay gap theories belong with the tooth fairy and the Loch Ness Monster.

So it should come as no surprise to learn that, among House staffers, Republican women may be getting the short end of the salary stick. Can’t really address a problem if you don’t think it exists, right? Perhaps.

This just in the Department Of No Kidding, Really? A new study shows that female doctors and researchers are paid less than their male counterparts.

We’re (usually) fans of Michelle Fields — which is why we were stunned this afternoon to see her trot out some ass-backward logic on the gender pay gap during a segment on Cavuto.

Fields, a reporter for The Daily Caller, appeared on the show to address alleged “hypocrisy” in House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s office. Her main gripe? She thinks Nancy Pelosi is hypocritical for leading a campaign to combat the gender pay gap.

When a Wisconsin state senator suggested earlier this month that the gender pay gap exists because “money is more important for men,” I wasn’t particularly surprised. Sure, his sentiment was phrased in a ham-handed, can-you-believe-this-guy-was-elected kind of way. But the message he sent was something we’ve seen dressed up in facts and figures time and time again. The message is this: Women don’t get paid less because of discrimination — they get paid less because they’re not trying hard enough to get paid more.