A bunch of GOP millionaires decide that working people don't deserve a raise
by digby
That's right. As promised the Republicans in the Senate filibustered the proposed minimum wage hike.
As expected, Senate Republicans voted on Wednesday to block debate on legislation to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.
The procedural motion to begin debate received 54 votes for, and 42 against -- short of the 60 needed to break a filibuster.
The only Republican who voted with Democrats to begin debate on the bill was Sen. Bob Corker (TN). "While I think the underlying policy is problematic, I think we should always debate ways to help improve the standard of living of Americans," he said in a statement sent to TPM.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) had expressed willingness to play ball on the minimum wage but decided that hike to $10.10 per hour -- phased in over three years -- was too high for her. Democrats, who are aggressively touting the issue on the 2014 campaign trail, declined to budge on the $10.10 figure.
Susan Collins, the allegedly compassionate Maine "moderate" who always finds a way to vote with the hard-liners while expressing how much she cares.
I don't think it makes sense for her to be in the Senate anymore, pretending to be someone the Republicans can "deal with" and then never actually dealing. She has an opponent in this cycle and a really good one, Shenna Bellows. Here's what she says about the minimum wage:
"I know what it's like to grow up in poverty, working to break into the middle class. In the minimum wage debate, the guiding principle should be that mothers and fathers who work 2 or 3 jobs should not be living in poverty. The guiding principle should not be: What will out-of-touch Republican politicians, many of whom are millionaires, agree to in order to keep their corporate funders happy.
"Instead of fighting to give American workers a $10.10 living wage, Susan Collins is joining corporate interests and national Republicans to water down the bare minimum that workers need to stay out of poverty. She is fighting to reduce wages for thousands of Mainers and millions of Americans. If I were in the Senate, I'd be leading the fight to rally the public and get out-of-touch Republican politicians to do the will of the people on this issue."
She's a terrific progressive on all the issues, including civil liberties. She was head of the Maine ACLU. She's living proof that you don't have to be a libertarian crank to stand up for the Bill of Rights and that being a progressive doesn't mean that you automatically assume the government is always right. The best progressives have a sophisticated and principled understanding of how our government works on behalf of the people and Shenna Bellows is one of the best. She also has a big heart.
You can contribute to Shenna's campaign here. She has a chance to beat Collins --- Maine is an odd state with a very flukey electorate (just look at Governor laPage and Angus King ...) and she could pull it off. They may be ready to vote for something other than a right winger disguised as a bucket of lukewarm water this time.