Tuesday, March 29th, 2016
Stephan: It is fascinating to watch the success of competent Democratic Governors like Jerry Brown in California, Andrew Cuomo in New York, Mark Dayton in Minnesota and to compare and contrast their performance and the state of their states, with ideological corrupt incompetents like Scott Walker in Wisconsin, Sam Brownback in Kansas, and Bobby Jindal (thankfully now out of office) of Louisiana -- as a partial list.
This story also show why unions and collective bargaining are important to maintaining a middle class, and how labor and government can work together to the benefit of all.
Finally I would note that the differences present us with these questions: Why are the people of California, Minnesota, and New York so different than those in Kansas, Wisconsin and Louisiana? Are they smarter? More well-informed? More capable of distinguishing the peanut butter from the BS as it comes off the fan? Or less driven by hate, racism, and fear?
I am not sure there is a single answer but I am sure of this: The standard of living in Blue value states is pulling away from Red value states at an increasing speed; to the point where the Great Schism Trend is now one of the most notable features of the United States.
California Gov. Jerry Brown
Credit: AP Photo/Ben Margot
A deal to raise California’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022 was reached Monday by Gov. Jerry Brown and state legislators, making the nation’s largest state the first to lift base earnings to that level and propelling a campaign to lift the pay floor nationally.
The increase will boost the wages of about 6.5 million California residents, or 43% of the state’s workforce, who earn less than $15, according to worker group Fight for $15. The proposal had been headed to a statewide referendum. It’s now expected to be approved by the state assembly.
“This plan raises the minimum wage in a careful and responsible way and provides some flexibility if economic and budgetary conditions change,” Brown said. The governor can temporarily suspend the hikes in the event of poor economic conditions or a large budget deficit.
About a dozen cities have approved bumps in their minimum wages to $15, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and several other municipalities in California.
In New York, Gov. […]
