Political Quotes

“I am voting to raise the minimum wage. This increase in the minimum wage is long overdue. While opponents have tried to kill this increase, inflation has killed the value of the current wage. The bill before us today has two major components. First of all, it raises the minimum wage from $4.25 an hour to $5.15 an hour. This is a major step in improving paycheck security for America's workers. Second, the bill contains a number of tax provisions. Many of these provisions are designed to benefit small business, and to address concerns that small business might be hurt by the wage increase the bill provides. One tax provision of special importance to me is the language that expands the availability of spousal IRAs. Along with Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, I am the author of the Homemaker IRA Bill. Sixty of our colleagues have joined in cosponsoring our bill to allow homemakers to get a full IRA deduction. So we are delighted that our bill, which is so important in providing retirement security for American families, has been included in this legislation. If this Congress fails to raise the minimum wage, we will be letting down millions of hard working men and women. We will be letting down the 130,000 Maryland workers who will benefit from an increase. The last time we acted to raise the minimum wage was 1989. When we add in what inflation has done to that increase in the last 7 years, the minimum wage is at its lowest level since 1955--40 years.”