I now move to proceed to Calendar No. 354. Mr. President, following my remarks and those of the Republican leader, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 11 o'clock this morning, with the majority controlling the first…
I now move to proceed to Calendar No. 354.
Mr. President, following my remarks and those of the Republican leader, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 11 o'clock this morning, with the majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half. At 11 a.m. there will be six cloture votes on six U.S. district court nominations. Following the votes, the Senate will recess until 2:15 to allow for our weekly caucus meetings.
Measure Placed on the Calendar--S. 2262
I am told that S. 2262 is due for its second reading.
I object to any further proceedings with respect to this bill.
Mr. President, this week the Senate will begin consideration of an increase in the Federal minimum wage.
Over the next few days Members of this body will come to the floor and make their case for or against increasing the minimum wage. Most of the statements we will hear today will be in favor of it because the Republicans are not anxious to come here and speak against raising the minimum wage. They will be very silent most of the time, and they will not talk much about an increase in the minimum wage, which is so vitally important to our country.
The American people will be inundated with figures and facts regarding the economic impact of an increase to $10.10. Why was that number chosen? It was chosen because at that number--$10.10 for 40 hours--a person is no longer in poverty.
As supporters of this legislation, Senate Democrats have ample evidence to back our position that an increase in the Federal minimum wage is good for America. A recent study from the Economic Policy Institute indicates that increasing the minimum wage and tying it to inflation would raise wages for 28 million American workers. That is about 10 percent of the American people. Contrary to what Republicans would have us believe, these 28 million Americans aren't just high school kids looking to make a few bucks after school. That same analysis reported that the median age of minimum wage workers is 35 years old, proving that these employees are grown men and women, most of them with families. If we needed any more reason to pass this important legislation, the most recent polling data reveals that about 75 percent of Americans back an increase in the minimum wage.
So the evidence supporting an increase in the minimum wage is ample, and it is there for all of us to see. However, the real issue transcends political polls and studies. The heart of the minimum wage debate is not found in statistics but, rather, in a question we should ask ourselves: What kind of a country do we aspire to be?
This Nation is home to the greatest economy on Earth. Even as we continue to recover from the great recession, there is no question that we are the richest country on the planet. Can anyone in this Chamber doubt that our economy has the capability of providing livable wages to American workers? The fact that in America there are full-time working mothers and fathers who must juggle two to three jobs just to provide food and shelter for their children is unconscionable.
Before any sulking billionaire comes forward as upset and pens an op- ed in some newspaper calling me a collectivist, as they have done, let me be clear: This is a question of fairness. Do
we believe it is fair that fellow Americans who work full time be paid less than a livable wage? I hope not. Or do we value all American workers and reward them with, at the very least, a baseline wage that enables them to provide for their families?
There was a recent story in Nevada about a young man named Dalven who works at McDonald's. He works hard, but his wages are so low he is forced to get another job. Working two jobs, what is this young man going to do? Is he going to go to college? Of course not. Is he going to go to trade school? Of course not. He is too busy working. What is going to happen to him to better his life?
Just a few months ago an incredibly successful businessman visited Capitol Hill. He said he put himself through college attending Harvard, and he did that being paid $2 an hour, which was the minimum wage at the time. He now is an elderly, very successful businessman. He worked full-time over the course of the year and was able to pay Harvard's tuition. The tuition at that time was $2,400 a year--which was a lot-- at one of America's premier schools. Jim even claims he had money left over after paying his college fees. Jim's daughter is now preparing to enroll at Harvard. If she were to be employed at today's minimum wage, she would need to work full time for 4 years to afford even one year of tuition and room and board at Harvard. The young man at McDonald's I just talked about, Dalven, could never dream of putting himself through Harvard or UNLV or any other place because he is working two jobs and cannot do it.
Simply put, it is not fair that working families are being stripped of the American dream. That is what Dalven has, as does everybody else, and as did the Presiding Officer and as did I--the dream to better oneself, to maybe even be better than what their family was able to be.
So, again, put simply, is it fair that working men and women are being stripped of the American dream because we refuse to pay them a livable wage? They are working hard. That is why this legislation before us is so critical.
An increase in the minimum wage obviously won't make a millionaire of anyone, but it will ensure that each full time working American receives a wage they can live on and that will give them a fighting chance to get ahead in the economy. Every hard-working American should have the opportunity to put a roof over their head and that of their family, and every full-time employee should have a fair shot at the American dream.
So I invite my Republican colleagues to consider what is fair for their constituents and to work with us to increase the Federal minimum wage, as 75 percent of the American people think we should do. They should join in giving every American a fair shot to provide for their families.
Recognition of the Minority Leader