Elections

Trump And Clinton Fight Over The Minimum Wage

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The Hillary Clinton campaign launched criticism at the Donald Trump campaign Monday for suggesting the minimum wage be left to the states.

Trump argued during a Sunday interview with NBC the federal government should not set a minimum wage. Jake Sullivan, a top foreign policy adviser for Clinton, said the idea would hurt millions of workers in regions that have a minimum wage below the federal floor.

“If that were to happen, if the federal minimum wage were to be eliminated, there would be a number of states in this country, where millions of workers live, where the minimum wage would drop immediately,” Sullivan said, according to the Daily Mail Online. “And we can anticipate that this would unleash a race to the bottom.”

Trump has been sympathetic of low-wage earners, but still argues states are best equipped to judge an appropriate wage floor for their residents. He also noted the competition between states would also help yield the best results. The current federal minimum wage is at $7.25 an hour.

Trump and Clinton have both struggled to maintain a consistent view on the minimum wage. Trump said Nov. 12 during a Fox News interview he believes the minimum wage should not be increased. He later tweeted Dec. 28 wages were too low. Clinton originally said the federal minimum wage should not exceed $12 an hour but said she meant that as a step toward eventually reaching $15 an hour.

Democratic candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders has supported the $15 minimum wage throughout the election. Supporters of the minimum wage increase argue it could help lift people out of poverty but critics warn it could actually hurt the very people it’s trying to help by forcing employers to cutback on their workforce or raise prices to overcome the added cost of labor.

The Trump campaign did not respond to requests for comment by The Daily Caller News Foundation.

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