Liveblogging Minimum Wage Debate

[RightinNYC]

I'm not going to clutter up the other min wage thread with this, but I'm going to liveblog the Min Wage debate that's going on tonight. For background, go here.

Or, go here and watch if you want to join in.

First thought:

Charlie Rangel's moustache is atrocious.

 

[RightinNYC]

Second thought:

Dave Reichert is pretty hot for an old guy.

 

[RightinNYC]

"They say legislation is like making sausages. This legislation is worse than that. It's like making sausage with poison pills in it."

-The ever eloquent Sandy Levin.

 

[RightinNYC]

Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) kind of looks like William H. Macy. He looks sad...

 

[RightinNYC]

Oooo and he's being feisty now. Predicting GOP loss of the House this November, and insisting that we pass the bill now. If he is so confident the GOP will lose badly, why not wait til Nov to pass it?

He got some good applause.

 

[RightinNYC]

Al Green (D-TX) is a pretty good speaker. Very good rhetoric, no applause, but I liked it.

 

[RightinNYC]

Diane Watson (D-CA) has a good point in that they don't have much time to read the bill, but then again, it's not like they're new bills...they're the same bills that have been being kicked around for months and I guarantee every person in there already has a stance on both clauses.

 

[RightinNYC]

Jay Inslee (D-WA) is just repeating what the D's before him have said, and not very well either. He also contradicted a fact put for by Pomeroy, and he keeps using the phrase "tell them to go fish." Now he's bringing in Jesus. Bad use of their time.

 

[RightinNYC]

Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) has a pretty baller bow tie on. But he's claiming that raising the wage to $7.15 will somehow equal a $2.35/hr cut in the wages for restaurant workers? Thats....impossible. He's claming that the bill would supercede the state minimum wage bills, but that's absolutely ridiculous. This only sets a MINIMUM wage, it won't invalidate higher state laws.

Doc Hastings (R-WA) just called him on it, hahahahahaha. Oh boy. That's kinda embarrassing.

 

[RightinNYC]

Zach Wamp (R-TN) has a great southern drawl. I like the American flag tie too. And he's basically admitting that the Reps are playing politics, but in a smart way.

"I know why you're mad. It's because we out-FOXED you! This is a very smart bill."

Good point.

 

[RightinNYC]

Now Blumenhauer came out for 15 seconds to try to clarify what he said. Not looking strong. Still apparently unaware that the laws are all minimums. Urg.

 

[RightinNYC]

Brad Sherman (D-CA)

He continues with the Dem approach of harping on the "poison pill" phrase. Don't know how this will play with the public.

 

[RightinNYC]

Ooooo, now it's getting big.

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) starts out with stating that 7,000,000 Americans would benefit from an increased min wage. Not her best speech, she's normally a much more impressive speaker. She's trying to tie this into the Democrats broad plan for the 2006 elections, and talking about unaffiliated issues. Not the place for that in a late-night speech right before the critical vote before the summer recess...

"But back to the minimum wage..."

hahahah. Nice.

And now she's talking about the Papal Encyclical? Nancy PELOSI???


Oh boy. She just vowed that there would be a vote on a motion to resubmit a stripped bill later tonight. Considering that we're only discussing a question of rules in this current 1 hour debate, this is going to be a looooooooooooong night.

 

[RightinNYC]

This motion is being voted on and is about to pass barring an externality, which means that we're going to have an hour of debate about the minimum wage/tax cut bill that's being discussed, and an hour about the pension plan that was discussed earlier this week.

 

[RightinNYC]

Here they go, now they're debating HR 4, the Pension bill.

 

[RightinNYC]

Jim McDermott (D-WA) - "Why don't we have C.S.I come in here and see if they can figure this out for us?"


OOOO BURN-

Bill Thomas (R-CA) - "I think the gentleman from Washington might want to rethink his opposition to this bill, as without the reform we are proposing, he might not be able to fly home on Northwest Airlines due to their pension problems."

 

[TheNextEra]

As I said in another post, for those against the minimum wage increase because you say it isn't needed, why aren't you voting out the members of congress that get a cost of living increase automatically since, of course, it's not needed?

 

[taxedout]

As I said in another post, for those against the minimum wage increase because you say it isn't needed, why aren't you voting out the members of congress that get a cost of living increase automatically since, of course, it's not needed?

Good question. Why aren't you ?

 

[TheNextEra]

Good question. Why aren't you ?

I am on the plan to vote EVERYONE out of congress. What about you?

 

[RightinNYC]

As I said in another post, for those against the minimum wage increase because you say it isn't needed, why aren't you voting out the members of congress that get a cost of living increase automatically since, of course, it's not needed?

Because they earn it, by a long shot.

 

[RightinNYC]

Boehner is one of the most amiable people in Congress. He's ridiculously charming.

 

[RightinNYC]

so freaking charming. "my colleage over there has a smile on his face. He knows what I'm talking about."

 

[RightinNYC]

A procedural vote for changing the pension bill, then they're going to vote on the real pension bill. Here it comes.

 

[TheNextEra]

Because they earn it, by a long shot.

That's a riot. Don't complain about governemnt overspending then, YOU support it.

 

[RightinNYC]

If Nancy Pelosi says "poison pill" again I will choke her to death through the series of tubes by which I am watching CSPAN.