If the Democrats plan to defeat Donald Trump in the general election, Hillary Clinton needs to win over all of those voters who supported Bernie Sanders throughout the Democratic campaign. As we noted just weeks ago, the Vermont Senator – and by extension his supporters – wasn't sold on Hillary's ability to move in the direction that was necessary.
Recall, below is what Sanders had to say about wanting his 12 million supporters to be heard:
"Look we got 12 million votes during our campaign. We received the lion's share of young people who are prepared to stand up and fight for real change in this country, that's what we are bringing in to the Democratic convention. What do we want in return, we want our 12 million supporters to be heard."
The Democratic National Committee unveiled a draft of its party platform on Friday, it is evident that the DNC is focused on convincing those millions of Sanders supporters that it is serious about addressing their concerns. As Politico reports, the draft, which was approved by 13 of the 15 members on the drafting committee, calls for a $15 minimum wage, free community college and abolition of the death penalty.
From Politico
The Democratic National Committee unveiled a draft of its party platform Friday, calling for – among other progressive causes – a $15 minimum wage, free community college and abolition of the death penalty.
The draft was approved last weekend in St. Louis by 13 of the 15 members on the drafting committee, with one abstention and one who missed the vote.
Supporters of Bernie Sanders have expressed displeasure with the way the platform draft handles Medicare expansion, a carbon tax, a fracking ban and the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Sanders policy director Warren Gunnels told POLITICO that the trade deal is "the most significant issue for us."
On minimum wage, Bernie Sanders contended throughout his primary with Hillary Clinton that the federal minimum wage should be raised to $15, while the former secretary of state supported a $12 minimum federally and higher wages as decided on the local and state levels, both principles reflected in the draft.
The draft language says that the current minimum wage is a starvation wage, and that the Democratic National Committee applauds the approach of states such as New York and California, who both raised the minimum wage to $15 recently.
"Democrats believe that the current minimum wage is a starvation wage and must be increased to a living wage. No one who works full time should have to raise a family in poverty. We believe that Americans should earn at least $15 an hour and have the right to form or join a union – We applaud the approaches taken by states like New York and California. We should raise and index the minimum wage, give all Americans the ability to join a union regardless of where they work, and create new ways for workers to have power in the economy."
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It is unclear if any mention was made of the fact that even as California Governor Jerry Brown signed the minimum wage increase into law, raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, Brown admitted "economically, minimum wages may not make sense."
Just a quick reminder as to how this ends, companies that initiate higher wages will find a way to maintain the bottom line by either firing workers or cutting down their hours, as was the case with Starbucks. Other than that, it should work out nicely.
via http://ift.tt/29rvJpj Tyler Durden