Tom Harkin: “I also wanted to speak about the new National Labor Relations Board rules that came out just yesterday. It also has a…”

“I also wanted to speak about the new National Labor Relations Board rules that came out just yesterday. It also has a lot do with the middle class in America and what happens to the middle class. In 1912, women went on strike at a textile plant in Lawrence, MA. They inspired the Nation when they walked the picket lines with signs that said: ``We want bread, but we want roses too.'' Well, what did they mean by that? They meant they wanted jobs, but they didn't want just bear subsistence and slave jobs. As you know, many women died in the terrible triangle shirtwaist textile plant fire. They wanted jobs, but they wanted jobs that paid a living wage. They wanted jobs that did not work people 12, 18 hours a day, 6 or 7 days a week. Those words helped to shape the character of the country we created, a shared prosperity for the American people. Almost 100 years later, we face the same fundamental question about what kind of country we want to be. When we imagine the America of our dreams or our children and grandchildren, is bread just good enough for the middle class or should we have some roses too? Republicans portray our country as poor and broke, and they have used that as an excuse to rationalize an unprecedented attack on the middle class. But, the reality is we are the wealthiest Nation in history. It is just more and more of our country's wealth is being concentrated at the top.…”