“I’ll
commit suicide before I vote on a clean minimum-wage bill,” Republican
Speaker of the House John Boehner once said. But as the minimum wage
fight hits Washington, DC, fight between the regressive economics of the
GOP and the timid proposals of the Democrats is shown an alternative in
the city of Seattle. (Photo: AP)
Though Democrats now seem
determined to push a proposed minimum wage increase this year, lifting
the federal rate from $7.25 t o $10.10, the chances of giving millions
of workers a raise—even an increase that progressives see as not nearly
enough—is likely dead in the Republican-controlled House of
Representatives.
And speaking of 'dead'—and according to
The Hill
on Friday—that's exactly what Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH)
would prefer to be, if forced to choose between ending his life and
giving low-wage workers even in the most minimum of wage hikes.
With the headline, '
Boehner: I’d rather kill myself than raise the minimum wage,' the newspaper reports that the GOP leader's opposition to the measure is so strong historically that he once told
The Weekly Standard he would "commit suicide" before voting 'Yes' on a clean minimum wage increase for workers.
The story serves as a reminder of a typical—yet not to be
forgotten—scenario in Washington. In this case, a minimum wage increase
that would still leave workers barely scraping by is put forth by
Democrats in order to give them electoral leverage going into the
mid-terms, but even that half-measure is categorized as leftist,
anti-business fanaticism by their Republican counterparts (also scoring
points with their base). Likely to pass the Democrat-controlled
Senate—where it heads to floor as early as next week—but not even
receive a vote in GOP-controlled House, currently led by Boehner, the
increase remains stranded and workers continue to suffer under wages
that haven't budged in nearly forty years.
That's Washington.
In Seattle meanwhile, a spirited grassroots campaign to raise the
city's minimum wage to $15 an hour is receiving growing popular support.
A
recent poll
by a city business alliance showed that 7 out of 10 local customers
favored the dramatic increase, one which economists says gets workers
much closer to a truly living wage.
(Click for larger image)
As
The Stranger, a local newspaper, reported: "These numbers may be off the charts, but they're rock solid."
"We were certainly surprised," admitted Andrew Thibault, whose
company conducted the survey, about the unexpectedly positive results,
"but it seems that there is a tipping point."
What's additionally striking is that the poll found support for a
straight up increase to $15 with people saying that workers shouldn't
wait for the wage to be "phased-in" and that exemptions should not be
made. Proving that bold is better, it seemed to analysts that one of
main driving forces behind the support for a more aggressive increase in
the city was the corresponding fact that people in Seattle are riding a
wave of political optimism in which they think the city's moving in the
right direction. As
The Stranger exlpains:
Thibault suspects another factor may have come into play, one beyond
the control of either side of the debate: Seattle's surging sense of
self-confidence. According to the survey, 63 percent of Seattle voters
believe the city is "going in the right direction," up from 53 percent
in September and 43 percent in 2011. "That's a crazy number," says
Thibault.
But perhaps more impressive is the "wrong track" number, which has
plummeted to just 19 percent. "There's a tremendous amount of optimism
in the city," says Thibault.
And that optimism may help explain why even when a narrow majority
agree with one of the leading talking points against raising the minimum
wage, it doesn't move the dial very far. For example, 51 percent of
voters actually agree that "increasing the minimum wage will hurt local
small, minority owned, and family owned businesses." But at the same
time, 71 percent of voters also agree that a higher minimum wage would
"help" local businesses "because more workers making more money means
they will have money to spend at local businesses."
Seattle voters aren't ignoring the concerns of small businesses; they
have simply determined that the benefits of a higher minimum wage
outweigh the costs: 82 percent agree that raising the minimum wage
"ensures more families can make ends meet and get ahead," while only 40
percent call it a "job killer." Seattle voters simply aren't moved by
the classic argument that a higher minimum wage would shutter businesses
and destroy jobs. "People right now aren't buying it," says Thibault.
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