Bart Stupak: “7.5 million Americans would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage. That is 7.5 million people who are currently…”

“7.5 million Americans would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage. That is 7.5 million people who are currently struggling to make ends meet in an economy where job growth is slow, pay is falling, and prices are rising. The minimum wage is currently at a historically low level in terms of purchasing power and at a striking 50-year low when adjusted for inflation. Hardworking families are currently struggling because this Republican Congress has refused to raise the minimum wage for the past 9 years. Democrats believe that these millions of hardworking Americans deserve a pay raise to help them make ends meet in this tough economy. We believe that no one who works full-time in this country should have to live in poverty. They deserve a shot at the American Dream, a chance to give their family the opportunity to move ahead. Mr. Speaker, within the first 100 hours of the new Democratic Congress, we are going to give these hardworking Americans a much-needed pay raise. It is time this Congress started expanding economic prosperity to those who have been left out. I ask my Republican colleagues to join the Democratic Congress in raising the minimum wage in January.”