Thankfully the President is out on the stump and the Congressional Democrats have found their collective voice on the still critical issues of wages and inequality. There’s been lots of activity around the wage gap between men and women and the proposed measly increase in the minimum wage–the debate ought to be about doubling the minimum wage and indexing it to the cost of living.
We’re hearing the same old stupid claptrap from the radical right and all their mouthpieces on Fox News about how the women’s wage gap is a myth, and how raising the minimum wage will destroy jobs–perfect examples of how when confronted with inconvenient truths they simply lie–and lie–and lie some more.
Our friend Jared Bernstein, one of America’s best economists who was the Chief Economist and Economic Adviser to Vice President Biden and a scholar at the Economic Policy Institute had a great, short article on his blog about the relationship between the minimum wage and women’s wages. In his words the correlation is tight. Seems that 58 percent of the increase in the proposed minimum wage increase would go to women and that, further, the minimum wage has been a critical support for women’s wages over the years.
Increasing consumer demand and making life a little less mean for America’s lowest paid workers should be enough reason to raise the minimum wage. Now we also know that raising the minimum wage will do a little to close the women’s wage gap and to lessen overall wretched inequality.
But with the President and the Democrats finally focusing with purpose and intensity on wages, we have an issues horse to ride into the elections this November. And not too soon. Maybe we can get trade agreements off the damn table and focus on raising wages and the positives about the Affordable Care Act for just six short months. We will trust the Republicans to give us enough fools, pedophiles, and plain ol Bible thumping sexual predators to give us a hand going into November to help, but our side has to raise cane about wages, poverty, and the destruction of the middle class.
Photo source: matthewsburnabyblog.wordpress.com