Had Enough?
Saturday, February 3rd, 2007The world is warning George W. Bush to ‘BACK OFF IRAN!!!’ before he gets hurt waging his increasingly expensive “International War On Terror” while neglecting the signs that he’s sowing the seeds of a much different kind of war with his domestic policies.This week, the Senate voted 94-3 to approve the increase in the minimum wage after Democrats and Republicans agreed to extend tax breaks for small businesses that would bear the cost of the higher wages. The cost to the U.S. Treasury of that and other tax benefits in the Senate measure would be $8.3 billion over 10 years, according to estimates by the Joint Committee on Taxation.
And yet, these tax breaks aren’t necessary! Three out of four small business owners polled by Gallup in March 2006 believe a higher minimum wage would have no effect on them. In fact, 46% would favor an increase in the minimum wage, believing that a higher minimum wage would attract and retain better workers, improve the employment situation in their area, and is “the right thing to do” for their employees.
The partisan hype against the minimum-wage increase goes against a whole raft of US government data. For example, the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows the majority of workers who would see their wages rise under the Democratic proposal are not part-time workers earning the current minimum wage of $5.15 per hour.