GOP Senate Candidate Demands Lower Wages

Roll Call reports that the National Republican Party is recruiting Domino's Pizza CEO David Brandon as their candidate in the economically-hard-hit state of Michigan. The Wall Street Journal reported that after the 2004 election Brandon was the guy who said he is "counting on the president to counter any potential moves to increase the minimum wage" - even though the minimum wage is nearing a 50-year low in terms of purchasing power. Brandon, a longtime Republican donor, has many weapons at his disposal to make sure wages in his state stay low: Since 1998, Domino's has given the Republican Party more than $100,000 (see here and here for details).

And there is plenty of support among the Republican Party in Michigan to keep wages in their state low. The chairman of the Michigan GOP is Betsy Devos of the billionaire family that controls Amway. In 2004, she actually issued a press release claiming that "most of the economic problems in Michigan are a result of high wages." It was quite a thing to say to Michigan workers considering the Detroit News had reported one month before that "Michigan ranks dead last among the states and the District of Columbia in personal income growth since 2000."

But apparently for the GOP and its top-tier Senate candidates, wages in America need to be even lower than they are now, so that their corporate donors can buy their extra yachts. And what's interesting, is that there is now less and less of a distinction between GOP candidates and GOP donors - they are becoming one and the same. This year alone, two of their top-tier potential candidates are Brandon, and multi-millionaire Bentley-driving corporate executive Rich Tarrant in Vermont. With Senators like that, you can bet the GOP will get its way and fully eliminate the minimum wage for millions of workers.

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