Mark Pocan: “Thank you. While we definitely want to make sure we are talking about all the issues that are important to this country…”

“Thank you. While we definitely want to make sure we are talking about all the issues that are important to this country, and minimum wage is one that we want to also talk about tonight, we wanted to take this time just to highlight what happened, this travesty two weeks ago, and we hope that this will be cured. Outside officials, regardless of their perspective, shouldn't be involved in the election, but we want to make sure we are highlighting what happened, because that election was not fair. Thank you very much, gentleman from California, for all your many years of service on this. At this point, we would like to also discuss tonight something that is very important. The Democrats, this week, took on what sometimes is considered a very unique measure in this House, it is called a discharge petition, because we have been fighting for over a year to try to raise the minimum wage in this country. There is a bill introduced by the gentleman from California and Senator Harkin from Iowa that would raise the minimum wage to $10.10 within 3 years. If we had kept up with inflation since 1968, the minimum wage right now would be something like $10.60. Instead, we are at $7.25, and people can't get by. You certainly can't be in the middle class on that wage, and certainly it makes it hard to aspire to be in the middle class on that minimum wage.…”