January, 25 2021, 11:00pm EDT

Sanders, Top Democrats Introduce Bill Raising Minimum Wage to $15 by 2025
WASHINGTON
In a press conference today, incoming Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) joined incoming Senate HELP Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.), House Committee on Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-Va.), Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), and Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) to announce the introduction of legislation raising the federal minimum wage to $15 by 2025.
The Raise the Wage Act of 2021 would increase the federal minimum wage to $15 in five steps over the next four years. Beginning in 2026, the federal minimum wage would be indexed to median wage growth. According to an independent analysis conducted by the Economic Policy Institute, the Raise the Wage Act would increase wages for nearly 32 million Americans, including roughly a third of all Black workers and a quarter of all Latino workers.
"Let's be clear. The $7.25 an hour federal minimum wage is a starvation wage. No person in America can make it on $8, $10, or $12 an hour. In the United States of America a job must lift workers out of poverty, not keep them in it. We must raise the minimum wage to a living wage--at least $15 an hour. And when we do that, not only will we be lifting millions of Americans out of poverty, we will be providing a raise to over 33 million workers," said Senator Sanders. "We can no longer tolerate millions of workers not being able to afford to feed their families or pay the rent. The time for talk is over. No more excuses. It is time for Congress to act to raise the minimum wage to at least $15 an hour."
"Throughout this pandemic, Democrats and Republicans alike have joined together in rightly calling our frontline workers 'heroes.' But despite their tireless work and the risk of COVID exposure, too many of these workers are paid wages so low, they can't afford to pay for even their most basic needs. And because of systemic inequities and discrimination, workers of color, and in particular, women of color, are much more likely to be paid poverty-level wages," said Senator Murray, Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. "Democrats are asking for $15 an hour, because no one working 40 hours a week, should be making $15,000 a year. If we're committed to an economy that works for everyone, we need one fair, livable wage for everyone--and that includes workers with disabilities, tipped workers and youth workers. We won't accept carve-outs and we won't accept leaving anyone behind."
"Americans working 40 hours a week should be able to put food on the table and a roof over their families' heads, but with the minimum wage stuck at $7.25, far too many are working hard and still in poverty," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. "Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour is one step Congress should take right now, particularly with the COVID-19 crisis stretching families' resources further than ever. I am happy to move forward with this group to make it happen and give the American people a raise."
"This pandemic has pushed millions more Americans into poverty and we need to ensure that every working American is able to support themselves and their families," said Senator Gillibrand. "Passing the Raise the Wage Act is more critical now than ever. Finally delivering a $15 minimum wage will benefit workers by lifting their families out of poverty and it will strengthen our economic recovery. We must keep fighting until all hardworking Americans can access basic economic security and a fair shot in our economy."
"My colleagues and I have introduced this legislation raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour because Georgia's working families are struggling to pay the bills, and they deserve a livable wage for an honest day's work," Senator Ossoff said.
"The coronavirus pandemic and economic crises have pulled back the veil on the unconscionable economic disparities that working women, low-income families and other vulnerable communities have faced for decades," said Speaker Nancy Pelosi. "By re-introducing the Chair Bobby Scott's Raise the Wage Act, which passed on a bipartisan basis in the previous Congress, the Democratic Congress is taking another strong and long-needed step to honor the dignity, dedication and contributions of millions of hard-working Americans. This legislation is a key part of Democrats' commitment to not only recover from these crises, but to Build Back Better - and to do so in a way that advances justice, prosperity and equality for all Americans."
"Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the $7.25 federal minimum wage was economically and morally indefensible. Now, the pandemic is highlighting the gross imbalance between the value of our workers and the wages they are paid. Many of the essential workers who have braved a public health crisis to keep our economy moving are still not being paid enough to provide for themselves or their families. The Raise the Wage Act is a critical step toward lifting hardworking people out of poverty, addressing inequality, and ensuring that all Americans can share in the economic recovery.," said Chairman Bobby Scott, Committee on Education and Labor.
"As a longtime organizer for working people who helped draft the resolution that made Seattle the first major city to enact a $15 minimum wage, I know that raising the wage is good for workers, families, businesses and the economy," said Congresswoman Jayapal. "Now that we have a Democratic White House and a Democratic Senate, it is time for the People's House to once again stand up for workers, fight for families and pass the Raise the Wage Act so we finally have a $15 minimum wage all across America."
"Last Congress, I was proud to help lead the historic effort in the House to give Americans a raise. Floridians then followed suit and voted to increase our state minimum wage and put more money in the pockets of hard-working families," said Congresswoman Murphy. "This bill is a reasonable step to boost our economy and ensure everyone who works hard in this great country can provide for themselves and their loved ones."
"Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour will change my life and let me tell my kids I can give them a better life than mine," said Kansas City McDonald's worker Fran Marion. "I'm so proud to join with leaders in Congress today as they reintroduce the Raise the Wage Act, which will give tens of millions of working families like mine the raise we so desperately need. Essential workers have been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic and we can't wait for help any longer."
"Raising the federal minimum wage to $15 by 2025 will be a boost to the economy, and a boost to our sales. Raising wages is good business. Paying people fairly leads to greater staff retention, which reduces the cost of hiring and training new people to replace employees who leave. And fair pay leads to better quality, better ideas and better customer service," said Mike Draper, owner of Raygun LLC, an Iowa-based clothing and home goods company and member of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage.
Sanders' Senate companion is being cosponsored by 37 Members: Chair Murray (D-Wash.), Leader Schumer (D-N.Y.), Sens. Baldwin (D-Wis.), Bennet (D-Colo.), Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Booker, (D-N.J.) Brown (D-Ohio), Cantwell (D-Wash.), Cardin (D-Md.), Casey (D-Pa.), Duckworth (D-Ill.), Durbin (D-Ill.), Feinstein (D-Calif.), Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Heinrich (D-N.M.), Hirono (D-Hawaii), Kaine (D-Va.), Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Leahy (D-Vt.), Lujan (D-N.M.), Markey (D-Mass.), Merkley (D-Ore.), Murphy, (D-Conn.) Ossoff (D-Ga.), Padilla (D-Calif.), Peters (D-Mich.), Reed (D-R.I.), Rosen (D-Nev.), Schatz (D-Hawaii), Smith (D-Minn.), Stabenow (D-Mich.), Van Hollen (D-Md.), Warner (D-Va.), Warnock (D-Ga.). Warren (D-Mass.), Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Wyden (D-Ore.).
To read the bill text of the Raise the Wage Act, click here.
To read the section-by-section of the Raise the Wage Act, click here.
To read a fact sheet on Raise the Wage Act, click here.
Watch today's press conference here.
Read Sanders' prepared remarks below:
"This country faces major economic crises.
"Real unemployment is now close to 12% and last month alone 140,000 workers lost their jobs. Millions more face hunger, eviction and crushing debt.
"We have massive income and wealth inequality in America today. Incredibly, during the pandemic, 650 billionaires in America have increased their wealth by more than $1 trillion, while millions of workers struggle to feed their kids.
"And, in the midst of all of that, we must never lose sight of the fact that over half of our workers are living paycheck to paycheck. I'm talking about workers who are just one car accident, one medical emergency, one lost paycheck away from financial catastrophe.
"Let's be clear. This is the richest country in the history of the world. We can no longer tolerate millions of our workers being unable to feed their families because they are working for starvation wages.
"Let's be clear. Nobody in America can survive on $7.25 an hour, $9 an hour or $12 an hour. We need an economy in which all of our workers earn at least a living wage.
"It is a national disgrace that Congress has not passed an increase in the minimum wage since 2007 - 14 years ago.
"It is a national disgrace that the minimum wage has lost over 30 percent of its purchasing power since 1968.
"Yes. Now is the time to raise the minimum wage to a living wage - at least $15 an hour. A job in the United States of America should lift you out of poverty, not keep you in it.
"And when we increase that minimum wage to $15 an hour we will be giving over 32 million Americans a much needed raise.
"In fact, if the legislation we are introducing today becomes law, the average low-wage worker in America would receive an extra $3,300 - each and every year.
"And let's be clear. The overwhelming majority of Americans support raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour. This is not a radical idea. This is what the American people want.
"Since 1998, every time a state has had an initiative on the ballot to raise the minimum wage it has won - no matter if that state was red, blue or purple.
"In November 61% of the people in Florida - a state Joe Biden lost by 3 points - voted to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
"Eight states and over 40 cities have adopted laws to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
"During the last session of Congress, the House did the right thing under the leadership of Speaker Pelosi and Chairman Scott - and I applaud them for their efforts - and passed legislation to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour - and I have no doubt that they will do it again this year.
"Now, this issue rests in the Senate. It is my strong hope that a number of my Republican colleagues will come to their senses and understand that raising the minimum wage is not just a Democratic issue.
"No matter whether you are a Republican, a Democrat or an Independent - all of us understand that no one in America can make it on $8, $10 or $12 an hour. We have got to raise that minimum wage to $15 an hour.
"But let me also say this. If we cannot get enough Republicans to vote for this legislation under regular order, we cannot take no for an answer.
"We must understand that the issue of starvation wages is a national emergency.
"We must raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour through budget reconciliation by a simple majority vote in the Senate.
"And, as the incoming Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, that is exactly what I am fighting to do.
"This is not a new concept. If the Republicans could use reconciliation to pass trillions of dollars in tax breaks for the wealthy and large corporations, if the Republicans could use reconciliation to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, if the Republicans could use reconciliation to try to repeal the Affordable Care Act and throw up to 32 million Americans off of the healthcare they have, we can and must use reconciliation to protect the needs of working families.
"We must use reconciliation to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
"Now is not the time for excuses. Now is not the time for more talk. Now is the time for action. Now is the time to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour."
LATEST NEWS
Abrego Garcia’s Attorneys Say He Faced Beatings and ‘Psychological Torture’ in El Salvador Prison
While the prisoners were kneeling, guards allegedly kept watch over them and would physically strike anyone who fell over from exhaustion, allege attorneys representing Abrego Garcia.
Jul 03, 2025
Attorneys representing Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an immigrant whom the Trump administration wrongly sent to El Salvador's infamous Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), are alleging that he and other detainees at the site were subjected to physical abuse and psychological torture.
In a court filing published on Wednesday evening, Abrego Garcia's attorneys write that their client "was subjected to severe mistreatment upon arrival at CECOT, including but not limited to severe beatings, severe sleep deprivation, inadequate nutrition, and psychological torture."
The filing describes Abrego Garcia and approximately 20 other inmates "being struck with wooden batons" after arriving at the facility as they were frogmarched to their cell, where guards would subsequently force them to kneel from 9:00 pm until 6:00 am While the prisoners were kneeling, guards allegedly kept watch over them and would physically strike anyone who fell over from exhaustion. The complaint adds that "during this time... Abrego Garcia was denied bathroom access and soiled himself."
The complaint alleges officials at the prison would repeatedly threaten to transfer Abrego Garcia to cells that contained gang members who would "tear" him apart. These threats were made more menacing, the attorneys state, because "Abrego Garcia repeatedly observed prisoners in nearby cells who he understood to be gang members violently harm each other with no intervention from guards or personnel. Screams from nearby cells would similarly ring out throughout the night without any response from prison guards on personnel."
During Abrego Garcia's first two weeks at the facility, the attorneys write, he lost approximately 31 pounds.
The Trump administration last month complied with a Supreme Court order to facilitate Abrego Garcia's return to United States after it acknowledged months earlier that he had been improperly deported to El Salvador. Upon his return, the United States Department of Justice promptly hit him with human smuggling charges to which he has pleaded not guilty.
President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi have also accused Abrego Garcia of being a member of the gang MS-13, although they have produced no evidence to back up that assertion.
Keep ReadingShow Less
'People Will Suffer, People Will Die': GOP Nears Final Passage of Largest Medicaid Cuts in US History
"The top 1% are salivating over getting an extra $300,000 a year because of this dangerous bill," said one House Democrat. "Billionaires win."
Jul 03, 2025
House Republicans are on the verge of passing legislation that is projected to strip health coverage and food aid from millions of people across the United States, all to pay for tax breaks that will flow disproportionately to a small sliver of rich Americans.
The final vote on the sprawling budget reconciliation package, which narrowly passed the Senate on Tuesday, is expected Thursday after hours of jockeying among Republican leaders and holdovers in the GOP's ranks overnight. Republicans finally cleared a procedural hurdle to begin debate on the measure after 3 am ET on Thursday.
"If Republicans are so proud of their Big Bad Betrayal Bill... why did they begin debate at 3:28 am?" asked Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.). "Why are they hiding from the American people?"
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) delayed the final vote on the bill with an hours-long—and, as of this writing, still ongoing—speech that featured stories from constituents who are horrified that they will soon lose health coverage or food aid.
"This isn't abstract, taking away healthcare from the American people," said Jeffries. "It's concrete, it's real, it has devastating implications."
Watch Jeffries' remarks live:
The unpopular legislation that set to clear the House Thursday is substantially more expensive than the version the chamber's Republicans approved in May, and it includes roughly $300 billion more in cuts to Medicaid. The bill now heads to the desk of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly pledged not to cut Medicaid.
Analysts estimate that over the next 10 years, roughly 17 million Americans will lose health coverage under the GOP package, both due to the measure's Medicaid cuts and its failure to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at the end of the year.
The bill's assault on Medicaid—including its restriction on states' use of provider taxes to fund their programs—is expected to ravage rural hospitals, notwithstanding Republicans' last-ditch attempt to put a Band-Aid on the massive wound they're set to create.
The legislation would also trigger more than $500 billion in automatic cuts to Medicare due to its multitrillion-dollar addition to the deficit.
One recent study estimated that the bill's healthcare cuts would result in more than 51,000 additional, preventable deaths across the U.S. each year.
"The decision we have been entrusted by the American people to make will have ramifications for millions of our fellow Americans, and indeed for our country, for decades to come," Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.), the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, said in floor remarks early Thursday.
"In just a few short hours, some of them on Medicaid will be waking up and turning on the news to find out if what we did here tonight means they're about to lose it," said Boyle. "Some of the people who get their healthcare from the ACA exchanges will be turning on their TV to find out what we've done in these next few minutes, and if they will still be able to have healthcare... The kids who rely on SNAP, the nutrition assistance program, they may not quite understand it, but make no mistake about it—what we are about to do in the next few minutes here will have a profound effect on their lives."
As Ranking Member @HouseBudgetDems, I'm on the House floor right now to lead the fight against Trump's Big Bill for Billionaires.
This bill is an attack on my neighbors — and I'm not going to let Republicans kick 17 million Americans off their health care without a fight. pic.twitter.com/MeBkYKd8f2
— Rep. Brendan Boyle (@CongBoyle) July 3, 2025
The GOP bill proposes $186 billion in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cuts over the next decade, which analysts say will imperil benefits for millions—including many children. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that around 1 million children "would see food assistance to their families cut substantially or terminated" due to the legislation's SNAP cuts, including its expanded work requirements.
The measure's unprecedented cuts to the safety net, as well as clean energy programs, will only partially offset its trillions of dollars in tax cuts. According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), more than 70% of the legislation's net tax breaks "would go to the richest fifth of Americans in 2026, only 10% would go to the middle fifth of Americans, and less than 1% would go to the poorest fifth."
"The effects of President Trump's tariff policies alone offset most of the tax cuts for the bottom 80% of Americans," ITEP found. "For the bottom 40% of Americans, the tariffs impose a cost that is greater than the tax cuts they would receive under this legislation."
Rep. Gabe Amo (D-R.I.) said in a floor speech early Thursday that "budgets are statements of values," and Republicans "are showing they have none."
"People will suffer, people will die, and it will be the hands of Republicans who vote yes," said Amo. "The top 1% are salivating over getting an extra $300,000 a year because of this dangerous bill. Billionaires win."
Back speaking on the House floor at 3:45am because budgets are a statement of values — with this big, ugly bill Republicans have none.
Americans will suffer. Americans will die. And it will be at the hands of the Republicans who vote yes.
This budget is shameful. I’m a hell no! pic.twitter.com/K5Ri5lGzzs
— Congressman Gabe Amo (@RepGabeAmo) July 3, 2025
Ahead of the bill's final passage, state leaders warned that the cuts pushed by Republican lawmakers could be deeply destructive to their residents and economies.
"Voices across North Carolina are sounding the alarm—our hospitals, healthcare providers, county leaders, state leaders, business leaders, workers, nonprofits, and, most importantly, the people who rely on these essential services and industries every day," North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein wrote in a letter to his state's congressional delegation on Wednesday. "Many North Carolinians are worried about feeding their families, being able to continue seeing their doctor, or keeping their jobs. We are united in our concern that this reconciliation bill would undo decades of bipartisan progress and harm the health, well-being, and economic security of our individuals, families, and communities."
Keep ReadingShow Less
'Yes, You Are,' Tlaib Tells Lawmaker Who Said Republicans Aren't 'Little Bitches' Doing Trump's Bidding
"This budget betrayal is the largest cut to Medicaid and food assistance in history to give billionaires a tax break," said the Michigan Democrat.
Jul 02, 2025
Progressive Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib on Wednesday clapped back at one of her Republican colleagues who suggested that the GOP effort to pass the so-called Big Beautiful Bill this week isn't in response to a directive from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has set a July 4 deadline.
“The president of the United States didn't give us an assignment. We're not a bunch of little bitches around here, OK? I'm a member of Congress. I represent almost 800,000 Wisconsinites," Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) told journalists near the back entrance to the House of Representatives chamber, according to Punchbowl News' Kenzie Nguyen.
Responding to Van Orden's claims on the social media platform X, Tlaib (D-Mich.) simply said, "Yes, he did, and yes, you are."
The Michigan Democrat also released a video explaining to constituents why she is voting "hell no" on the package, which would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and strip an estimated 17 million Americans of their health insurance over the next decade while giving trillions of dollars in tax breaks to the ultrarich and corporations.
Tlaib wasn't the only House Democrat to notice the Republican's remarks. A fellow Wisconsinite, Congressman Mark Pocan, asked his followers on X, "Do you think Derrick Van Orden is right... that Congress is not a bunch of 'little bitches'?"
According to Politico's Samuel Benson and Mike DeBonis, Van Orden's comment came in the context of confirming he would vote for the budget reconciliation package, despite some critiques. The congressman reportedly said: "So this bill will pass. Am I happy about everything? No, but there's a difference between compromise and capitulation. We're not capitulating. We're compromising."
His remarks to reporters, and the backlash, came as the House considered a version of the megabill passed by the Senate on Tuesday, with help from Vice President JD Vance. GOP leaders in the lower chamber are struggling to get it past a procedural hurdle due to opposition from Republican fiscal hawks—plus all Democrats, who oppose steep cuts to the social safety net.
To protest the Republican effort to send the bill to Trump's desk by Independence Day, House Democrats on Wednesday formed a procedural conga line offering an amendment that would block cuts to Medicaid and SNAP.
Multiple Democrats also took to the House floor to rail against the package, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who declared that "this bill is a deal with the devil. It explodes our national debt, it militarizes our entire economy, and it strips away healthcare and basic dignity of the American people. For what? To give Elon Musk a tax break and billionaires the greedy taking of our nation. We cannot stand for it, and we will not support it."
"You should be ashamed," Ocasio-Cortez told the chamber's Republicans.
As Common Dreams reported earlier Wednesday, progressives outside of Congress are also working to block the bill. Advocacy organizations, including Indivisible, are urging Americans to call and email House Republicans and pressure them to oppose the package. The phone number for the House switchboard is 202-224-3121.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular