David Obey: “we are being asked why we are raising the issue of the minimum wage on this legislation. The answer to that is very…”

“we are being asked why we are raising the issue of the minimum wage on this legislation. The answer to that is very simple: The way this House works, absolutely nothing can be brought to the floor for a House vote unless we have the permission of the majority party leadership to do so. And the fact is that for the last month they have been absolutely stonewalling every single effort to bring an increase in the minimum wage to this floor. So that is why we are raising this question on this rule. This President and this Congress, this year, are going to provide $50 billion in tax cuts for people who make more than $1 million a year. This year, the Congress has virtually voted to repeal the inheritance tax on the wealthiest 1 percent of people in this society. This year, the Congress has also voted to make further cuts in capital gains, a huge portion of which go to the wealthiest 10 percent of the people in this country. This year, the Congress is apparently willing to allow the cost-of-living increase to go through for Members of Congress, but for those stuck at the bottom of our economy on the minimum wage, they are being told, ``sorry, suckers, you have got to wait for the ninth year in a row without an adjustment in your wages.'' That is not right, it is not fair, and it is not moral. The value of the minimum wage is at a 51-year low. The gap between the wealthiest 1 percent of people in this society and everybody else has never been broader than it is today.…”