Why are some Senators against a minimum wage increase in the Covid bill,

[duforsure]

When they've had 4 since 2005 , and the minimum wage hasn't been raised for 14 years. It raises people out of poverty, increases spending, increases tax revenues, lowers the gap between the rich and the poor which has always helped the economy. They've given themselves raises, so what's their excuse for these lower wage earners.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

1. Raises for me, but NOT for thee.

Go figure.

[BlueNProud]

2. Because you must own the libs by screwing over your constituents

[rampartc]

3. "conservatives" oppose any minimum wage

and like nothing better than starving workers fighting each other for crumbs.

[OnDoutside]

4. Is there any way to find stats on how many of the working poor were likely Manchin voters at

his last election ? His attitude suggests not a lot.

[XanaDUer2]

5. Why do some minimum-wage voters

vote for them? Also, they got theirs. Screw the poor is America's republican mantra

[Nexus2]

8. I read this some time ago so I'm sorry if I'm mutilating it now.

"The poor in other countries vote like they're poor, the poor in America vote like they're temporarily down on the luck millionaires."

[XanaDUer2]

18. So true and pretty delusionally sad

we're all just one invention away from millionaire status

[gab13by13]

6. Because it would decrease the income inequality gap.

[global1]

7. For All Those Positive Effects You Mentioned In Your OP....

The Repug Senators don't want the Dems to get the credit for doing. It would make the Dems look so good and they'd garner more support from the American People and win more seats in the House and Senate. The Repugs can't have that happen.

With respect to Manchin - I don't know what his problem is. If I was the Dem Trump - I'd primary him. Need to get one of us in his seat.

[Hortensis]

9. :) Aren't ALL Republican senators opposing a MW increase?

The noise now is over a Democratic senator, progressive moderate conservative/sometimes liberal Joe Manchin. He does support a MW increase. In 2014 he also voted for one that was defeated.

This time he believes a jump to $15 wouldn't work right for his relatively poor/low-production state. He does believe that -- for his state -- $11/hour over the next 3 years would produce more real benefit for employees than $15 phased in over 5 would.

It's not at all simple, but he has numbers to back his position. The $15-ers and the $0ers also provide numbers. Notably, WV's voters reliably elect Republican governors and Republicans to control legislature, so $11 would be a very large increase over WV's current minimum.

Whatever, the FEDERAL minimum wage sets a national MINIMUM. For most employees anyway. All states can increase it to suit the needs of their people, and of course as their voters choose. Many always have, and new increases of various sizes take effect in half the states this year. Not in red WV, though.

[Klaralven]

10. Minimum wage should probably be set on a metro area basis

States aren't good proxies for cost of living. There is a roughly two to one difference between Syracuse and New York City or between Bakersfield and San Francisco.

National minimum wage should be set for the small city cost of living, which tends to be 15 to 25% less than large metro suburban and 50 to 100% less than large urban center.

[uponit7771]

11. +1, 15 is too small for LA but too large for Mobile Alabama

[Klaralven]

12. Nerd Wallet says cost of living is 36% lower in Mobile than LA-Long Beach.

https://www.nerdwallet.com/cost-of-living-calculator/compare/los-angeles-long-beach-ca-vs-mobile-al

[Hortensis]

13. Agree entirely with that general kind of approach. $15 is poverty

income for employees living in a lot of places. Not that I'm opposed to a $15 national minimum, but there are usually a number of paths to the same goal, which all have different combinations of costs and benefits.

My minimum wage goal is that all full-time (?29+ hours/wk?) jobs should pay a genuine living wage. Not $15, but a living wage in their locale.

We're an extremely wealthy nation. Our goal is restoration of general, widespread wellbeing and regrowth of the middle classes by all workers sharing in the prosperity they help create. By various much needed changes.

[msongs]

19. blue states get $15 and red states don't. should make manchin and other repubs happy nt

[area51]

14. Because they're evil. n/t

[rickford66]

15. Too high ? How low should it be ?

Should it be lowered instead ? How low would satisfy them ? It was zero for many people when America was great. The protests against inequality are minor compared to a civil war. The wealthy don't understand the economics because they don't want to.

[Bettie]

16. The senators we're talking about here don't see a reason for a minimum wage increase

as they have plenty of money and assume that the poor can just 'tighten their belts' and 'budget better'.

Most of the ones we're talking about here have never had to stretch those last couple of dollars until the next paycheck. Heck, most of them have never had to do their own grocery shopping.

They have certainly never worked a minimum wage job as their only source of income.

[Hotler]

17. Selfishness. nt

[DeminPennswoods]

20. Business owner-donors complain about having to pay

their employees a liveable wage. The example is always of the teenager working before/after school at the local small business and why should some kid get $15/hr. Nevermind that kid's income might just be crucial to the family's household.