(UnitedVoice.com) – Imagine what America would be like with a $50-an-hour minimum wage. The idea seems improbable. When a Senate candidate recently proposed just that, she had a hard time even explaining how it would work.
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) is hoping to replace the late Senator Dianne Feinstein in California. She is running against Democratic powerhouse Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA, who is known for her whiteboard antics during congressional hearings, and former baseball player Steve Garvey (R). She attended a debate on February 12 and was questioned about her past support of a $50/hr minimum wage.
The Senate candidate appeared to back down slightly from the extraordinarily high proposal, which would have increased the annual minimum salary to $104,000. She defended her past support, saying previous studies have shown that a single person earning that wage was still having a hard time getting by because of California’s affordability crisis.
Lee told the moderator to “do the math,” claiming it was clear that the US minimum wage should go up to be a living wage. She said that they were talking about $20 or $25 an hour, the wages the other Democrats support, but that she is focused on what her state needs. Lee said they would need to factor in affordability when they create the wage, suggesting it would not be the same across the board.
The minimum wage is a popular topic with Democrats. They advocated for a $15-per-hour rate for years. They were successful in getting an increase in many states, including deep red states like Florida. Now, they are increasing the wage.
E.J. Antoni, a research fellow at the Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis, told Fox Business in 2023 that proponents of raising the minimum wage often say that “increasing it will help low-income workers and have no negative effects,” but it actually leads to fewer jobs and “the higher cost of labor” is passed on to customers.
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