Republicans Soften On Minimum Wage Hike

Democrats expressed confidence Thursday they would force votes in Congress to raise the minimum wage. Republican resistance to bringing up the issue was weakening, but GOP leaders made clear they would not give in without a fight.

“We believe we have the momentum to get the minimum wage passed,” House Democratic Whip David Bonior of Michigan said. “It is not a fait accompli,” Bonior said, but “we are going to keep up the pressure.”

“This Congress will pass minimum wage legislation,” agreed Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota.

Vice President Al Gore joined in predicting that Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole would allow a minimum wage increase to pass. “When all is said and done,” Gore told the American Society of Newspaper Editors, “mark my words, he will cave to the pressure of the American people. It will happen in the next week or two.”

Republican opposition to the Clinton administration’s proposal to raise the current minimum wage of $4.25 an hour by 90 cents over two years softened Wednesday when 20 moderate House Republicans endorsed the need for an increase.

On Wednesday night, Dole, who has opposed raising the minimum wage again, said he was “looking at maybe some way we can formulate an increase in the minimum wage.”

But the GOP’s presidential nominee-in-waiting also said on “The News Hour with Jim Lehrer” that Senate consideration would only come at some pain to Democrats.