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Minimum Wage Hike a Casualty of Bush Veto |
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When President Bush vetoed legislation setting timetables for U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq yesterday, he also vetoed the first increase in the minimum wage in a decade.
That means Republicans for 112 days have held hostage a minimum wage increase. While minimum wage workers have not had a pay raise since 1997, Congress gave itself nine pay hikes, totally more than $36,000.
Here’s how it got to this point:
The U.S. House passed a bill Jan. 10 that would have boosted the federal minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $7.25, without another round of tax breaks for business. Senate Republicans filibustered the House bill for a week in January, using Senate rules to force minimum wage backers to win 60 votes instead of a simple 51 majority and then killing the House bill on Jan. 24.
By killing the House bill, Senate Republicans forced Senate Democrats to add $8.3 billion in business tax breaks. They then refused to allow the combined minimum wage and tax package to move to a conference with the House until the House produced its own package of tax cuts for business.
Members of the House and Senate announced April 20 that they had reached agreement on $4.8 billion in tax relief for small businesses that will be paired with a minimum wage increase. They then added the minimum wage increase to the supplemental spending bill (H.R. 1591) conference report, which both houses passed and Bush vetoed yesterday.
Supporters of the minimum wage increase are disappointed, but undaunted. They vow to continue to send the package of tax breaks and a minimum wage increase back to the president until it is signed.
12 Comments
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Our government is run by corporations. Why should businesses be able to exploit individuals to an extent where they cannot survive on the wage they’re given? Why should they demand tax breaks and get them? The already disgustingly rich people who benefit from such tax breaks are a small fraction of the people who would have benefitted from the minimum wage increase. And they had no NEED of more money.
This country is lost. I want to move to Thailand or India.
This is just typical of the Republican Party leadership!
I hope all local labor organizations do not give credit to Senate or House Republicans who voted for the minimum wage increase under this trickery. Voting for a bill that they know will get vetoed is NOT supporting the underlying cause or proposal!
Corporate America and this administration,,,,,both sides of the aisle are destroying America a little bit every day. Just like the GOOD OLD DAYS,,,,,,,GREAT DEPRESSION The depression never bothered the elite class in those days,,,,another depression would not faze them nowdays.
Bush does not care! He is like a child throwing a temper tantrum. We need a clean minimum wage bill-nothing attached, nor hooked to any other bill. What will it take to show Congress that they are destroying the middle class, along with Bush?
What I am most disappointed about is the fact that the minimum wage bill has to be tied to a bill that is tied up with alot of other issues. Why can’t the minimum wage bill be voted on by itself?
Let’s send the conference bill right back with nothing else attached to it. Let’s make the President veto the pay raise. Then we know clearly, which side everyone is on.
We should demand a clean up or down vote on the minimum wage without it being tied to any other issue or tax breaks. If the Republicans filibuster, then keep them talking hour after hour, day after day, month after month if we have to in order to get a vote!
Some legislation is so important in its own right that it should always stand alone on principle. The minumum wage increase is that important to so many people that are struggling for their very existence. They deserve to be represented by a government that cares for the downtrodden more than the well-to-do. We failed in this attempt because we accepted a compromise adding tax cuts for business and than we allowed that legislation to be added to another bill that also deserved to stand alone.
I would rather have the president and his party receive the critical spotlight they alone deserve for vetoing two separate bills that illustrate their priorities of favoring corporate influence over working families. Those at the bottom of our economic ladder, and our loyal troops(largely from working families)certainly deserve better advocacy and treatment than this government has ever shown them.
There are times for principled compromise but never times to compromise principle.
All this shows us is that the stuggle is far from over. In fact, folks should push for minimum wage reform in all 50 states as well as congress. Also, they should push health care reform and worker’s rights.
I agree with the other posters, wage bill should have been voted on as a single item instead of being included in other leglislation.
If the president would veto min wage, woe to the republicans next election if they would not vote to overturn veto.
Labor should stand its ground and if the Democrats or Republicans do not wish to pass fairness to worker leglislation, time to find our own. We have time prior to next election.
Labor activism did elect senator in Missouri and let none believe otherwise. Other areas labor has big stick. Time to walk a little less softly and use that stick if needed.
No both Dem & Rep are at fault for the mim wage did not pass is because you don’t know how to do it dummies. You don’t put it on a bill with something else. Period & yes All of you Jackass need to go on S/S/ & forget about your Plush retirement. You retire My way period…………….Joe Sanzo III
It’s bad enough that the president has vetoed the Iraq Accountability legislation. That he managed to also veto the first federal minimum wage increase that only 12 senators opposed compounds his venality and that of the corporations who are his cronies. This legislation should not have been bundled with the Iraq Accountability bill–the president was going to veto it, and did, and he did not even state that part of it as the reason for his veto–he just went on about the withdrawal date.
Time to contact our members in Congress, if we haven’t already done so.
A minimum wage increase would solve the illegal immigrant crisis (Americans would be hired by their ability rather than how much) the health care crisis (working families could afford health insurance) and give more buying power to Americans.
It is absolutely criminal that the workering class in this country can not get a livable wage pay raise, yet Congress who is elected by the people and are supposed to represent the people find it very easy to give themselves a pay raise. It is also criminal that Congress has medical coverage and pensions, yet workers throughout this country have taken concessions in wages, pay an increase in medical coverage and if their pension has not been terminated, they have had to take reductions or no increases. It is an insult to all workers. Enough is Enough!