Posted on 02/01/2012 4:00:41 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
Mitt Romney said Wednesday that he supported tying the federal minimum wage to inflation, a move that would result in automatic increases to the pay rate. The position is a break from fiscal conservative orthodoxy — which generally seeks to eliminate the minimum wage — but could help Romney rebound from damaging comments he made earlier Wednesday when discussing the "very poor" in America.
"I haven't changed my thoughts on that," Romney told reporters aboard his campaign plane on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press. He was apparently referring to a statement he made in 2002 when running for governor of Massachusetts, when he advocated an increase in the minimum wage and indexing it to inflation — a proposal President Obama touted in 2008 during his presidential run.
But in 2006 Romney vetoed an increase in Massachusetts's minimum wage, arguing that a salary hike would cause a loss of jobs. The last federal increase, which passed in 2007, implemented gradual increases until 2009, when the minimum wage hit it's current rate of $7.25 an hour.
Since then, Romney has made reference to an indexed minimum wage on the campaign trail, signaling that he still supported the idea on a federal level.
Newt Gingrich said last month that he was "surprised" that Romney held the position when asked about it during a New Hampshire town hall.
"I'm surprised because what it does is guarantees higher unemployment," Gingrich said. When his questioner offered video of Romney supporting the inflation-based minimum wage, Gingrich joked he'd "like that a lot."
But the increased focus on Romney's position Wednesday could help the Republican frontrunner battle back on a stumble earlier in the day, when Romney told CNN that he is "not concerned about the very poor."
Later Wednesday, Romney defended his statement to reporters, arguing that his words were taken out of context.
"No no no no. No no. You've got to take the whole sentence, all right, as opposed to saying, and then change it just a little bit, because then it sounds very different. I've said throughout the campaign my focus, my concern, my energy is gonna be devoted to helping middle income people, all right? We have a safety net for the poor in, and if there are holes in it, I will work to repair that. And if there are people that are falling through the cracks I want to fix that," Romney said. "Wealthy people are doing fine. But my focus in the campaign is on middle income people. Of course I'm concerned about all Americans — poor, wealthy, middle class, but the focus of my effort will be on middle income families who I think have been most hurt by the Obama economy."
But just in providing the soundbite, Romney played into the theme, cultivated by his political opponents, that his wealth left him out of touch with most Americans.
New York State introduced legislation to raise it's state minimum wage to $8.50 an hour Wednesday, although similar proposals in Congress have stalled after Republican leaders signaled their strong opposition to further increases.
I hate him more and more every day!!
Romney represents the Ted Kennedy wing of the Republican Party.
Say something stupid, promote something even dumber!
Tell the RNC there is no way in HELL you will vote for Romney. Lets tie up their phone lines.
Office of the Chairman
Phone: 202-863-8700
Fax: 202-863-8820
Tell the RNC there is no way in HELL you will vote for Romney. Lets tie up their phone lines.
Office of the Chairman
Phone: 202-863-8700
Fax: 202-863-8820
So much for Romney being so great on the economy- he doesn’t understand that the minimum wage actually causes inflation!
I’m no economist, but doesn’t wage inflation feed right into REAL inflation? What good is it going to do anyone who works at Wal-Mart to earn $30 per hour, when they’ll need a suitcase full of cash to buy a loaf of bread and gallon of milk? I would imagine that inflating wages in response to inflation would have a feedback loop effect on inflation.
Is he really that stupid?
I'm thinking the folks working for minimum wage don't much care about that since most of them have gov't subsidized incomes anyway...
Apparently what Romney knows that Newt hasn't figured out yet is that those people on minimum wage know how to and do vote...And now days, there's millions of them...
A hike not only drives up the minimum wage but also has the effect of driving up wages above the minimum — an inflationary domino effect thanks to union contracts.
Apparently. From time to time I have to teach economics to high school kids and even they can see how inflation works.
Romney’s statement in context is worse than out of context. He’s going to spend billions “fixing” the social safety hammock.
Gomer McRomneylenty.
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