12-19-05,9:40am

Dec. 16—One of the most popular toys this holiday season—the $120 Roboraptor—would cost three days’ wages for a parent making the minimum wage, according to congressional supporters of an increased minimum wage.

Speaking at a Dec. 14 news conference in front of the Capitol holiday tree, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) recalled that when the tree was lit, House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) urged lawmakers to “spend time reflecting on the true reason for the season.”

“To me each year, this season offers an opportunity to renew our commitment to the values of hope for the future, goodwill toward others and generosity toward those less fortunate,” Miller said. “And this year, for the eighth year in a row, Congress is set to recess without taking one of the simplest, most time-tested actions it could take to reduce poverty: raise the minimum wage.”

The federal minimum wage has been set at $5.15 an hour since 1997 and congressional Republicans repeatedly have blocked attempts to increase it, most recently in October. Two bills, H.R. 2429 and S. 1062, would boost the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour over two years.

“If we value the Christmas tree, the menorah, the crescent, it’s the very least we ought to do,” said Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.).

“In this time of skyrocketing prices, minimum wage workers’ budget doesn’t even allow them to pay the rent and meet basic needs. There are simply no funds left over for a turkey dinner, a trip to visit family or a stocking filled with toys,” said Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.). Kennedy and Miller are the original sponsors of the two wage bills.

Miller urged Republican congressional leaders to bring the wage bills to a vote before adjourning for the year instead of “preparing to bestow more tax breaks on the rich while further eroding the trust that says that America will take care of all Americans, especially the less fortunate.”