Although Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) is a far-right MAGA Republican and a Donald Trump loyalist, he occasionally takes populist stands that give him some common ground with Democrats — for example, coming out in support of raising the United States’ federal minimum wage.
Early Tuesday morning, June 10, CBS News reported that Hawley “plans to introduce legislation” that would “raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour — a position that aligns one of the most conservative Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill with some of the most liberal members of Congress.” And he is co-sponsoring the legislation with Sen. Pete Welch (D-Vermont).
Hawley told CBS News, “For decades, working Americans have seen their wages flatline. One major culprit of this is the failure of the federal minimum wage to keep up with the economic reality facing hard-working Americans every day. This bipartisan legislation would ensure that workers across America benefit from higher wages.”
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Welch spoke to CBS News as well, saying, “We’re in the midst of a severe affordability crisis, with families in red and blue states alike struggling to afford necessities like housing and groceries. A stagnant federal minimum wage only adds fuel to the fire. Every hard-working American deserves a living wage that helps put a roof over their head and food on the table — $7.25 an hour doesn’t even come close.”
In July 2009, the United States’ federal minimum was raised to $7.25 per hour under then-President Barack Obama. That was 16 years ago, and there hasn’t been an increase since then.
Hawley’s announcement is getting a lot of reactions on the Elon Musk-owned X, formerly Twitter.
Some on the right are critical of the announcement, including Tom Renz — who tweeted, “Great… moving us one step closer to universal basic income and killing more jobs… great job GOP.”
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Similarly, X user Don Smith argued, “The average US minimum wage is $10.48 (per Grok); the current federal minimum wage is $7.50. $15 would wipe out most ‘starter jobs’ so important to kids entering the workforce. And, deportations will increase labor demand, naturally driving wages higher. Don’t hurt kids Josh.”
The Rev. John Cereghin, pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Smyrna, Delaware, said of Hawley, “He’s a Democrat.”
But other X users applauded the Hawley/Welch proposal.
College professor Daniel Aldrige wrote, “A fair wage for workers that enables them to better support their families is not ‘socialism.’ It’s an essential part of the social contract. Widespread high standards of lives helps conservatism.”
X user Candy Watson posted, “I accidentally agree with this.”
Daniel Abbey, a self-described “Bannonite Trumpian,” wrote, “Great decision by @HawleyMO! MAGA is a working-class movement.”
X user Max Overload tweeted, “Cool, but what is that going to matter when the job market is wrecked by artificial intelligence? A $15 an hour minimum wage is irrelevant if unemployment is at 50%. This big beautiful bill has zero AI oversight for the next 10 years. AI needs guardrails.”
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Read CBS News’ full article at this link.
