Econ Comments & Analysis
Washington Times | Minimum wage, maximum nonsense
In his 2013 State of the Union message, President Obama suggested that Congress increase the federal hourly minimum wage from its current rate of $7.25 to at least $9. Several states are also debating an increase; indeed, the California Legislature recently approved and Gov. Jerry Brown just signed a bill that would boost the hourly state minimum from $8 to $10 in three years. In Florida where I reside, the legal minimum (with some important exceptions) is $7.79 and is inflation-adjusted annually.
USA Today | Democrats must avoid Republican economic anarchism: Column
Economic calamity begets radical politics. America's worst financial panic and recession since the 1930s gave birth to the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street movements. Now Occupy seems to be fizzling out, but in Week 2 of a government shutdown, it is looking more likely that Tea Party Republicans could plunge the nation gratuitously into a new economic emergency.
