Joel Barkin Bio Blog Index RSS 08.02.2006 Republicans Show Their Hypocrisy on "States' Rights" (4 comments ) Some time this week the Senate will vote on the the estate tax/minimum wage bill that passed that House last week. This legislation is a disaster. The bill doesn't simply raise the federal minimum wage, it guts state law wage protections for roughly 1 million workers. The White House is aggressively courting legislator support on this bill, three top staff at the White House had a conference call this week urging all state legislators to lobby their Senators. The bill includes an increase in the minimum wage for most employees, "but would result in wage cuts for tipped employees in seven states and would restrict other states from extending additional protection to tipped workers, as a number may do this fall on ballot initiatives. This unprecedented action represents the first time in history Congress has moved to use federal authority to lower workers' wages -- setting a very unfortunate precedent. According to Congressman George Miller, the Senior Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee, "Never before in the history of wage law has the federal government acted to preempt and eliminate a state law that provided for higher wages than federal law. The Republican Congress couldn't help itself. Even while the Republicans pretend to be helping workers, they are driving down wages of some of the lowest paid workers and putting a limit on how much a state can choose to help these workers." Don't be fooled, this bill is a cynical effort to allow rightwingers to claim voting for a minimum increase while forcing progressives to pick between higher wages for some at the expense of others and numerous horrible tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.
Finally something we can agree on Z! When it comes to money always ask for a kiss from your Republican politicians. You deserve that much!
Bio: Joel Barkin Joel Barkin is the Executive Director of the Progressive States Network, a state-based organization committed to passing progressive legislation in all 50 states.... Another Moonbat on Huffingtonpost. (Yawn)....
Comment from Barkin's article on HuffingtonPost: "Pff! Is that supposed to be new "news"? Republicans showed their disdain for State's Rights when they went over the head of the Florida Supreme Court in 2000 and had their all-too-willing friends in the FEDERAL Supreme Court ursurp not only the will of the Floridians, but also the highest court of that State. From then on out, any republican that condoned this blatant act of disrespect for State's rights, and the U.S. Constitution, and still claimed "being for State Rights" are stinking liars, and closet-imperialists, and everybody knows it---that's why we refer to them as "reichwingers", the pro-empire/anti-Constitutional Democratic Republic wing of the Republican party." By: LiberalDemIda on August 02, 2006 at 06:10pm Flag: [abusive] Moonbats Unite!!