Trump’s McDonald’s visit highlights a significant problem for workers

New York
The last time Congress voted to increase the federal minimum wage, Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns both still existed, Patrick Mahomes was just 11 years old and Kamala Harris was San Francisco’s district attorney.
That minimum wage hike in July 2007 lifted the pay floor in the United States from $5.15 to $5.85 and allowed for two more increases to $7.25 in July 2009. The federal minimum wage hasn’t budged since then.
Former President Donald Trump’s visit on Sunday to a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania highlights the longest period without a national increase in the federal minimum wage since it was established in 1938.
After briefly manning a McDonald’s fry station, Trump punted when asked by a reporter if he’s in favor of lifting the minimum wage.
“Well, I think this: I think these people work hard, they’re great, and I just saw something, the process. It’s beautiful. It’s a beautiful thing to see,” Trump said. “These are great franchises, they produce a lot of jobs.” Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday attacked Trump for that non-answer and reiterated her calls for a higher minimum wage without specifying what exactly the new federal minimum wage should be.
Harris told reporters ahead of a campaign stop in Birmingham, Michigan that she believes “we must raise minimum wage.” “My opponent Donald Trump does not believe we should raise minimum wage. And I think everyone knows that the current federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, which means that the person who is working a full day and working full weeks will make $15,000 a year, which is essentially poverty wages,” Harris said.
The Harris campaign did not respond to CNN’s request for comment on how high she favors raising the minimum wage.
Opponents of raising the minimum wage often argue that moving too aggressively will kill jobs.
Michael Reich, chair of the Center on Wage and Employment Dynamics at the University of California at Berkeley, told CNN it’s very possible to boost the minimum wage without killing jobs.
“The reason is political. It’s not economics,” Reich said of the record-long period of time without a federal minimum wage increase. “It’s part of the political polarization.”
Efforts by Democrats in Congress to boost the minimum wage in recent years have repeatedly failed.
Asked whether Trump supports a federal minimum wage increase, the Trump campaign shared a statement from Republican National Committee spokesperson Anna Kelly blaming Harris for “lowering real wages and raising prices via reckless spending.”
“Not only will President Trump restore the booming economic climate of his first term, but he will eliminate taxes on tips and overtime pay and stand up to Communist China’s efforts to hurt American workers,” Kelly said. “Working families overwhelmingly support President Trump because only he will Make America Wealthy, Strong, and Great Again.