The minimum wage is always zero

Democrats have been fighting to use their slim majority in Congress to impose a national $15 minimum wage. But the minimum wage wouldn’t be $15 — it would be zero, as it always has been.

The Kroger Company is the most recent illustration of this point. The largest grocery chain in the country shuttered two stores in Long Beach, California, that it described as “underperforming.” The move came after the city approved a “hero pay” ordinance, mandating that certain businesses increase the hourly wages of their employees by $4 an hour.