SENATE REPUBLICANS FILIBUSTER AND KILL MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE
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The polling on support for the minimum wage is mind-boggling. Something like 90% of Americans support the long overdue, modest, gradual increase in the minimum wage that was passed overwhelmingly by the House as part of Nancy Pelosi's First 100 Hours Agenda. Reactionary Republicans in the Senate have ambushed it and killed it, at least for now. There were 54 votes in favor and 43 votes (all Republicans) against. (Because it was a cloture vote, 60 ayes were needed.) Even Lieberman voted with the Democrats! Other Republicans joining with the Democrats included Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Arlen Specter, Norm Coleman, and John Warner. Most of the Republicans voting no who are up for re-election next year are in solidly red states-- but not all of them. Let's try to remember Gordon Smith (OR) and John Sununu (NH) when it's time to vote in 2004. And from what I hear, there may be muscular campaigns against 3 other Republican incumbents who voted to screw over working people today: John Cornyn (TX), Elizabeth Dole (NC) and Mitch McConnell (KY). Interestingly, of the Repugs voting with the Democrats 3 are up for re-election (Collins, Coleman and Warner).
Oh, and let's remember that McCain fella who the media keeps telling us is such a straight-shooter and such a moderate. He wants to be president. And he voted to keep the filibuster going to kill the raise in the minimum wage. Which McCain? John McCain, the same guy that is demanding Bush send more troops to Iraq. Maybe he's afraid that if the minimum wage isn't below the povert level not enough people will join the military.
posted by DownWithTyranny @ 4:20 PM
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9 Comments:
If you take the premise that raising the minimum wage hurts jobs, a typical Republican talking point, then the comment by d.a. makes sense.
Since I don't and all the facts don't show it to be true then this is just typical conservative crap that they peddle anytime the minimum wage is going to be increased. If it was up to them there wouldn't even be one as George Will recently stated.
What a sick, sick party they are.
This is funny...say it's a talking point and then you cannot defend it...though why did you delete my post? Afraid I was right (no pun intended)?
Let me break it down for you...Farmer, pays minimum wage to workers; min. wage increases, farmer has to pay more; Price of goods increases; Distributor has to pay more for goods & to employees; Reflects new difference to Distributors customers (i.e. grocery stores); Grocery Stores have to pay minimum wage; plus increase in Distributors cost; Price goes up on store goods to compensate increase in price paid to distributor and to the employees.
Small business owners cannot always successfully raise prices, so they must cut from somewhere...this would result in job cutbacks.
What is so sick about this? I think it comes down to you know I'm right and you cannot argue your point other than give insults. Try me here, AND try me on my site...I'll eat your lunch.
I live in Kentucky and my senator Mitch McConnell is responsible for this. He comes up for election in 2008 and this hillbilly is going to do everything he can to get Mitch out of office, I've already started on the toothless neo con with this 29 second video.
http://www.hillbillyreport.com/blog/2007
/01/mitch_mcconnell_1.html
I am always amazed at the number of people who will passionately argue against their own good.
If more people are making more money, then local and yes even national businesses make more money. There is more money in the everyday economy. What few jobs might be lost will be easily offset by the ones that would be gained.
Bush et al claim the economy is great, and yet CEO's make hundred's of times that of what workers make, and for some reason they believe the economy is chugging along just fine.
Here is the deal, unless someone somewhere stands up for American workers and quick, there will be no jobs in this country except border patrol, prison guards, and spying on your neighbors.
Hey d.a.
Lemme break it down for you.
Good business owners know that people make the difference in their companies. Setting a fair price for goods so that all in the chain can be compensated fairly is good business. I'll gladly pay .25 cents more for a banana if it will raise the living standard of another human being.
You're a tired old right wing sounding talking point.
Hey Jim Pence, I'm down there with you if you wanna stop by McConnels office in Louisville for a little hillbilly style gatherin. I'll bring a pot to piss in while we protest (if I can find one.) We can leave it at his doorstep, leaking and all.
Ok, yes people will be making more money but to supplement the increase in the wages will result in a price increase on products. Come on folks, take a simple Economics class, it's not that hard to figure out...
Many jobs will be lost as businesses strive for cutting costs to counter the new costs of the increase, not the other way around which you have mistakenly described.
Your rationalizaation about future jobs is just dumb, like your argument it has no substance...
Tim,
We're not just talking .25 cents, that is very ignorant of you...I have given a very good example that might break it down for your simplistic mind on my site
da,
just the heading of your site is "just ignorant" as Michael Jackson would say so I assure you, I didn't waste my time.
Suffice it to say, raise the minimum wage and reduce the ceo pay (up to 400x that of the worker) and we'll all be fine.
So the Minimum Wage Increase is the victim of a Republican fillibuster. So much for bi-partisanship, Pelosi's hundred hour pledge gave a minimum wage increase of a lousy $2.15 over TWO years!! And yet these greedy sob's want more and more.
Then when I read that 28 senators voted on a bill they presented to get rid of the Minimum Wage entirely, and that the media had not even reported this disgusting greedy bill and it's votes, I hit the ceiling.
I had to do a cartoon on this topic since people will read a cartoon before they read an article.
to see the cartoon, "Minimal progress with the Minimum Wage" at my website;
www.whatnowtoons.com
and read this article from the AFL-CIO.....
They Did What? Outrage over Senators Who Voted to Repeal the Minimum Wage
by Tula Connell, Jan 26, 2007
It’s bad enough the Senate is twiddling and diddling over literally dozens of amendments some lawmakers want to add to a bill that would raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $7.25 over two years. House lawmakers earlier this month, with no similar hesitation or amendment-adding, passed a clean bill to raise the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour.
But when 28 senators voted Wednesday to repeal the minimum wage entirely, many across the country expressed outrage. As a commenter said on The Carpetbagger Report, which was among several blogs to cover the issue:
Suddenly they’re for state’s rights again. Impeach all 28.
Bob Geiger has the full list of senators who voted for the bill here. Meanwhile, Think Progress rebuts the myths some in the Senate are using as excuses for not passing a clean minimum wage bill.
AFL-CIO Now readers also are weighing in with their outrage. As Shirley Vargas puts it:
The union members should boycott every raise that is given to Senators and Congressmen….We should not endorse any raises and should boycott raises given to politicians. It is not right considering they are not willing to give an increase in minimum wage.
The unions should boycott their wages.
Patrick Riley, Sheet Metal Workers counsel, notes:
You should note that of the five states without a state minimum wage law, the Senators from Alabama and Louisiana, two of those states, voted “Nay” and one of the Senators from Tennessee also voted “Nay.” So half of the Senators from those five states voted “Nay.” It is interesting that the states represented by the “Yea” votes are all states in my opinion where the cost of living is already low as compared to the states represented by most of the “Nay” votes, and those Senators want to keep their low living standard that way, i.e. What’s the matter with Kansas?
Meanwhile, Frank Hagan is taking action through the AFL-CIO Working Families Network to send senators a message to pass a clean minimum wage bill:
Both my Senators, [Barbara] Boxer and [Dianne] Feinstein are for it. Instead, I e-mailed Republicans: Brownback and Lott—asked them to work on their fellow R’s to pass it without “poison pills.” Of course I am a Democrat, but it’s the R’s who are filibustering!
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