Mr. Speaker, as millions of Americans struggle to get by making the lowest real value minimum wage in 50 years, Republicans in this body are preparing to adjourn the House for a 5-week summer vacation without providing them with any financial relief.
Despite numerous attempts by the Democratic Members, Republicans still refuse to increase the minimum wage to a living wage. It is time for a new direction.
Six million people who would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage deserve better than a Congress that rewards the wealthiest while punishing those who need assistance the most and are willing to work for it. Eighty-six percent of Americans support increasing the minimum wage, because they know, just as Democrats in this body know, that it is simply wrong for a full-time worker with a full-time job to live in poverty in this great Nation.
