House speaker Newt Gingrich boasted to Paul Gigot of the Wall Street Journal that, for all his troubles, he’s never lost a vote on the House floor. True, but he did lose a vote in the House Republican leadership on hiking the minimum wage.
Terrified by polls showing that 80 percent of Americans favor a boost, Gingrich sent instructions on April 21 that no House Republican should publicly criticize the minimum wage. His order was passed to GOP leaders by an aide, because Gingrich was in New York at the time. Chris Cox of California, who heads the House Republican Policy Committee, was the first to challenge it.
Later, majority leader Dick Armey, whip Tom DeLay, and deputy whip Dennis Hastert all took on Gingrich, forcing him to change course and hold off on scheduling a vote on the minimum wage. Gingrich demanded one thing in return: Republicans must come up with their own plans to help working families.
That may take some time, though Armey began outlining an approach last week that would involve reforming the controversial Earned Income Tax Credit. But David Mcintosh of Indiana proposed hearings before his subcommittee on cutting regulations that currently discourage businesses from paying higher wages and hiring more workers. Gingrich liked the idea. The first hearing is May 16.
