Today's California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-04, CA-11, Richard Pombo, John Doolittle, Jerry Lewis, David Dreier, corruption, environment, immigration, minimum wage, reform. And now back to Mexico v. Argentina.
Today's California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-04, CA-11, CA-50, Paid-For Pombo, 15% Doolittle, Jerry Lewis, David Dreier, Brian Bilbray, corruption, immigration, minimum wage, reform.
This past week, much to everyone’s surprise, Democrats in the House of Representatives managed to slip a proposal to increase the minimum wage into a bill funding the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services.
Faced with the specter of having to vote against increasing the wage floor from its current embarrassing level of $5.15 to $7.25 by Jan. 1, 2009, Congressional Republicans snapped into action and pulled the bill.
This is what these brave souls do in election season when they don’t want to have to go back to their districts and answer questions as to why it’s ok to cut hundreds of billions in rich people’s taxes but deny the working poor a boost.
Well, I say: “Not so fast, guys. Let’s chat about this for a few minutes.”
Not let me get this straight. Last month, you passed $70 billion worth of new tax cuts, mostly by extending earlier Bush cuts on dividends and capital gains. When tax cuts target investment income, the benefits flow to the wealthy, and these cuts are exhibit A: they reduce millionaire’s tax payments by $43,000, and those of middle-income families by $20. Sorry, that’s not a typo. It’s what you get when you put the YOYOs in charge of fiscal policy.
Wait a second, where you going? I’m not done. Set a spell…
Today's California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Angelides, Westly, Schwarzenegger, Paid-For Pombo, Francine Busby, Winograd v. Harman, new David Dreier blog, CA-42, Prop 82, Jerry Lewis / CA-41, immigration, minimum wage, and the economy.
One of the arguments leveled against increasing the minimum wage has been the assumed negative effect it would have on small business. The fear expressed by many, mostly outside of small business it seems, is that raising the minimum will drive small businesses out of business as they struggle to pay the help. Of course, this has never happened with previous wage increases. When low-wage workers get a raise they spend it. This in turn puts more dollars in the pockets of businesses of all types which drives the economy because more employees are needed to service more consumers.
According to a recent Gallup Poll, an increase in the federal minimum wage ($5.15) is favored by almost half of all small-business owners. Seventy-five percent of small businesses claim that a 10% increase in the minimum would have no effect on their businesses.
Wouldn't it be great if these small businesses would get behind the effort to raise the minimum wage. Low-wage workers could earn more, put more back into the economy, and everybody wins as businesses do better and hire more workers which in turn puts more money into more hands continuing the cycle. Bubble up economics sounds a whole lot better to me than trickle-down. But then, I'm not the one doing the trickling, and have seen to many people, including myself, get trickled on. If the small businesses favoring a hike in the minimum wage would get on board and help in our campaign to increase it, we would have a powerful ally that would have to be heard. Alas, many small business owners are under the thumb of big business through Chambers of Commerce and other business organizations.
The Mindful Mission dissects Tom McClintock's editorial advocating the minimum wage as low as possible. Remember folks, Tom McClintock is Arnold's running mate, the Dick Cheney of the Schwarzenegger campaign.
Sorry for the late blog roundup. Been nonstop on other projects today since I posted the News Roundup this morning. Teasers for the flip: More Immigration, Dumptruck of Doolittle, Deep Thoughts on CA-11, Arnolds Ads, Miscellany.
California News Roundup for today on the flip. Teasers: Pot, minimum wage, end of life choices, three strikes, State Senate District 35, CA-50, salmon, immigration, stem cells, and the race for lieutenant governor.
