US Senate Defeats Raise in Minimum Wage

Many of the forces who fight against local and state minimum wage hikes -- like Republicans on the Albuquerque City Council and Democrat Marty Chavez -- claim they support a raise in the minimum wage at the national level. However, we can see how silly and damaging this position really is.  A proposed hike was defeated again yesterday by the U.S. Senate. From the New York Times:

WASHINGTON -- Senate proposals to raise the minimum wage were rejected Wednesday, making it unlikely that the lowest allowable wage, $5.15 an hour since 1997, will rise in the foreseeable future.

A labor-backed measure by Sen. Edward Kennedy would have raised the minimum to $6.25 over an 18-month period. A Republican counterproposal would have combined the same $1.10 increase with various breaks and exemptions for small businesses.

The Kennedy amendment to a spending bill went down 51-47, and the GOP alternative 57-42. Under a Senate agreement, they would have needed 60 votes for approval.

Kennedy, D-Mass., said Hurricane Katrina demonstrated the depth of poverty in the country and he pointed out that a single parent with two children working a minimum wage earns $10,700 a year, $4,500 below the poverty line.

He said it was "absolutely unconscionable" that in the same period that Congress has denied a minimum wage increase, lawmakers have voted themselves seven pay raises worth $28,000.

But Republican opponents, echoing the arguments of business groups, said higher minimum wages can work against the poor if they force small businesses to cut payrolls or go out of business.

Yeah, once again, we have the anti-worker contingent claiming jobs will be lost by the poor if they get paid an even nominally decent wage. Since this bunch hasn't shown any concern for the poor in terms of any other bill or issue for decades, you have to wonder why they think we'd believe them on this claim. I guess because they have the votes, all paid for by certain segments of the "business" community, and don't really care what ordinary people think or what's good for the nation as a whole.

This same Republican cabal is now going about the filthy business of attempting to cut Medicaid, Medicare, student loans, food stamps and more to pay for their absurd pork barrel spending, unending billions for Iraq, "defense,' "homeland security" and more than $40 billion in additional tax cuts for the wealthiest citizens. Moreover, they just voted themselves a pay raise in terms of Congressional salaries. Yet they balk at raising the minimum wage to a measley $6.25 an hour. Sorry, if a business can't pay its workers at least that much, I think they should close their doors because their product is probably as poor in quality as their pay scale. Shameful.