Democratic Women Senators Call For Economic Justice

The Democratic women senators just stood together at an amazing event where we delivered a very important message: No American woman should ever work a full-time job and still raise her children in poverty.

Yet at a time when 400 American families have more wealth than 150 million, an American single mom earning minimum wage at a full-time job takes home just $15,000 a year to support her family -- below the poverty line.

It's just not right, and we've got to do something about it.

That's why the Democratic women of the Senate have joined together to say: It is time to raise the minimum wage!

Raising the minimum wage will help millions of hard-working families -- but it will especially help 15 million American women.

• After all, American women represent two-thirds of all workers earning the minimum wage.
• American women are the main breadwinners, or joint breadwinners, in two-thirds of the families across the country.
• And American women are two-thirds of tipped workers.

Let me be clear: Raising the minimum wage isn't a job killer; it's an economy booster. Economists predict that raising the minimum wage will add $22 billion to America's GDP while creating 84,000 new jobs.

That's because when you raise the minimum wage, you help more families earn more income that they can save and spend. That's good for businesses all across the country that sell more goods and services. And when businesses sell more goods and services, they hire more workers.

It's a virtuous cycle that helps women, that helps families, and that helps our country.

We are so pleased that President Obama made raising the minimum wage a centerpiece of his State of the Union address on Tuesday -- and now it's up to Congress to heed his call.

Please stand with the Democratic women of the Senate now -- and urge Congress to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour!

It's not rocket science: If you work hard and play by the rules, you should be able to provide for your family and have an opportunity to get ahead.

Now let's make that happen.

Barbara Boxer, U.S. Senator

Tammy Baldwin, U.S. Senator
Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Senator
Mazie Hirono, U.S. Senator
Patty Murray, U.S. Senator
Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator

Bernie & Barbara Want To Fix The Fed

It was bad enough that the Wall Street bankers played fast and loose with the few regulations that Republicans had left in place, and in doing so, kicked off the current recession. But what is even crazier is to let those same greedy bankers on the governing board of the Federal Reserve (which sets monetary policy for this country). And Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Barbara Boxer (D-California) agree that doing so is sheer madness. Here is what they have to say:

Can you believe that, only four years after Wall Street and the Big Banks brought our economy to its knees, many of those same bank CEOs are helping to shape policy at the Federal Reserve?

Talk about the fox guarding the hen house. These executives are serving as directors of the very same Federal Reserve that bailed them out in 2008 -- and is supposed to regulate them today.

It's unbelievable, and we've got to do everything we can to end these outrageous conflicts of interest.

The General Accounting Office has detailed instance after instance of top executives of financial institutions and corporations who could have used their influence as Federal Reserve directors to financially benefit their firms -- including board members who were affiliated with banks and companies that received near-zero-interest emergency loans from the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis.

The American people deserve a Federal Reserve that is truly independent from the financial institutions it supervises and oversees. That’s why our Federal Reserve Independence Act would:

• Prohibit banking executives or employees of companies regulated by the Fed from serving on the Federal Reserve’s board of directors;
• Prohibit the banking industry from choosing any members of the Federal Reserve’s board of directors; and
• Prohibit Fed employees or board members from owning stock or investing in companies that the Fed regulates, supervises or oversees with absolutely no exceptions.

Americans deserve a Federal Reserve that works for them, not just the top one percent. Congress needs to pass the Federal Reserve Independence Act -- and you can help us do it.

It is time for change at the Fed -- real change. Thank you for joining us and helping to make that change happen.

Sincerely,

Bernie Sanders and Barbara Boxer
U.S. Senators

If you would like to add your support to this crusade to fix the Fed (and I urge you to do so), you can go here and become a citizen co-sponsor of this effort.