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Republican senator teams up with Democrat to push $15 per hour minimum wage plus annual inflation increases

Republican senator teams up with Democrat to push per hour minimum wage plus annual inflation increases

Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Peter Welch, D-Vt., are pushing legislation that would hike the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour and provide for annual increases to account for inflation. The proposal would implement a dramatic increase from the current $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage, which has been in place for more than 15 years. “For decades, working Americans have seen their wages flatline. One major culprit of this is the failure of the federal minimum wage to keep up with the economic reality facing hardworking Americans every day. This bipartisan legislation would ensure that workers across America benefit from higher wages,” Hawley said, according to press releases from both lawmakers. NEW STUDY REVEALS BLUE STATE’S FAST-FOOD MINIMUM WAGE HIKE JEOPARDIZED THOUSANDS OF JOBS The purchasing power of the U.S. dollar has eroded significantly over the years due to inflation. Under the proposed legislation, the yearly increases to the initial $15 per hour federal minimum wage would be based on “the percentage increase, if any, in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (or a successor index), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics” and would be “rounded to the nearest multiple of $0.05, if the amount … is not a multiple of $0.05.” CUOMO SAYS HE’LL RAISE NYC’S MINIMUM WAGE TO $20 AN HOUR IF ELECTED MAYOR “We’re in the midst of a severe affordability crisis, with families in red and blue states alike struggling to afford necessities like housing and groceries. A stagnant federal minimum wage only adds fuel to the fire. Every hardworking American deserves a living wage that helps put a roof over their head and food on the table–$7.25 an hour doesn’t even come close,” Welch said, according to the releases. “Times have changed, and working families deserve a wage that reflects today’s financial reality. I’m proud to lead this bipartisan effort to raise the minimum wage nationwide to help more folks make ends meet,” the senator added.  In post on X, conservative commentator Dana Loesch decried the idea of raising the federal minimum wage, pushing back against Hawley’s advocacy for the policy. SENS. BERNIE SANDERS AND JOSH HAWLEY: CAP CREDIT CARD INTEREST RATES AT 10% “This is a horrible, progressive idea,” Loesch asserted in the tweet.

Musk says he regrets social media posts targeting Trump: ‘They went too far’

Musk says he regrets social media posts targeting Trump: ‘They went too far’

Tech executive Elon Musk said Wednesday that he regrets making some of his recent social media posts attacking President Donald Trump, admitting they went “too far.” “I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far,” Musk wrote on X. This comes after a recent public spat between the two as Musk began criticizing Trump for his “big beautiful” spending bill after the billionaire tech executive spent months working to cut wasteful spending as part of the Department of Government Efficiency, which Musk has since departed. At one point, Musk claimed Trump was in the Justice Department’s files on its investigation into accused pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, saying that was why the president’s administration has not made them public. MUSK SIGNALS POTENTIAL SOFTENING OF FEUD WITH SIMPLE ONE EMOJI RESPONSE TO CLIP OF TRUMP WISHING HIM WELL “Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files,” Musk wrote. “That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!” Musk later deleted the post. Other posts from Musk included a claim that Trump would not have won the election without his help while accusing Trump of “ingratitude.” In another post, Musk suggested that Trump should be impeached and replaced by Vice President Vance. Trump said last week he is not interested in talking to Musk, telling Fox News that “Elon’s totally lost it.” The president also said while speaking with reporters in the Oval Office last week that he was “very disappointed” in Musk’s vocal criticisms of his spending bill. Trump claimed Musk knew what was in the bill and “had no problem” with it until electric vehicle incentives were cut, an assessment Musk slammed as “false.” TIMELINE: INSIDE THE EVOLVING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TRUMP AND MUSK FROM FIRST TERM TO THIS WEEK’S FALLOUT Trump also criticized Musk on social media, saying in one post: “Elon was ‘wearing thin,’ I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!” But this week, Musk and Trump have appeared to soften their stances against one another. “We had a great relationship and I wish him well — very well, actually,” Trump said on Monday. Musk, who had also been Trump’s senior advisor before his recent exit from the federal government, responded to the clip with a heart emoji. The public spat between the two billionaires appeared to be losing steam after Musk seemingly issued support for Trump’s response to the anti-ICE demonstrations in Los Angeles. “Governor Gavin Newscum and ‘Mayor’ Bass should apologize to the people of Los Angeles for the absolutely horrible job that they’ve done, and this now includes the ongoing L.A. riots. These are not protesters, they are troublemakers and insurrectionists,” Trump said late Sunday in a post Musk shared. Musk also reacted to a post by Vance, who shared a screenshot of a post from Trump about how his administration would address the demonstrations in Los Angeles. “This moment calls for decisive leadership,” Vance said along with the screenshot. “The president will not tolerate rioting and violence.” Musk responded to the post with a pair of American flag emojis. Fox News’ Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.

Police injured, houses burned in second night of riots in Northern Ireland

Police injured, houses burned in second night of riots in Northern Ireland

Rioters said to target ‘foreigners’ in Northern Ireland town following alleged sexual assault of local teenage girl. Hundreds of masked rioters have attacked police and set homes and cars on fire in Northern Ireland’s Ballymena in the second night of disorder described as “racially motivated” by police following a protest over an alleged sexual assault in the town. Police said they were dealing with “serious disorder” on Tuesday night in the town, located about 45km (30 miles) from the capital Belfast, and urged people to avoid the area. Officers in riot gear and driving armoured vehicles responded with water cannon and firing plastic baton rounds after being attacked with Molotov cocktails, steel scaffolding poles and rocks that rioters gathered by knocking down nearby walls, the Reuters news agency reports. One house was burned out and rioters attempted to set a second home alight, according to reports, while several cars were set on fire. The Belfast Telegraph newspaper said that some residents in Ballymena have started to mark their front doors to indicate their nationality to avoid attack, while Irish media outlets report that a call has gone out for protests to be held in other towns and cities in Northern Ireland, currently part of the United Kingdom. Police vehicles are parked as flames rise during a second night of riots, in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, on June 10, 2025 [Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters] During earlier violence on Monday, four houses were damaged by fire and windows and doors were smashed in other homes and businesses, in what police said they are investigating as racially-motivated hate attacks. Advertisement “The terrible scenes of civil disorder we have witnessed in Ballymena again this evening have no place in Northern Ireland,” the UK’s Northern Ireland minister, Hilary Been, said in a post on social media. “There is absolutely no justification for attacks on PSNI [Police Service of Northern Ireland] officers or for vandalism directed at people’s homes or property,” he said. Unrest first erupted on Monday night after a vigil in a neighbourhood of Ballymena where an alleged sexual assault occurred on Saturday. The trouble began when people in masks “broke away from the vigil and began to build barricades, stockpiling missiles and attacking properties”, police said. Two teenage boys, charged by police with the attempted rape of a teenage girl, had appeared in court earlier in the day, where they had asked for a Romanian interpreter, local media reports said. Tensions in the town, which has a large migrant population, remained high throughout Tuesday, with residents describing the scenes as “terrifying” and telling reporters that those involved were targeting “foreigners”. “This violence was clearly racially motivated and targeted at our minority ethnic community and police,” Northern Ireland Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said. The Police Service of Northern Ireland said it was investigating “hate attacks” on homes and businesses and that 15 officers were injured in the rioting on Monday, including some who required hospital treatment. Cornelia Albu, 52, a Romanian migrant and mother-of-two who lives opposite a house targeted in the attacks, said her family has been “very scared”. Advertisement “Last night, it was crazy, because too many people came here and tried to put the house on fire,” Albu, who works in a factory, told the AFP news agency. She said she would now have to move, but was worried she would not find another place to live because she was Romanian. Adblock test (Why?)

LA mayor announces curfew amid protests over Trump’s immigration crackdown

LA mayor announces curfew amid protests over Trump’s immigration crackdown

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has announced a curfew for part of the United States’s second-largest city amid protests against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. The curfew applies to 1 square mile (2.6sq km) of the downtown area, and will be in effect from 8pm on Tuesday to 6am on Wednesday (03:00 GMT to 13:00 GMT Wednesday), Bass said. “Many businesses have now been affected or vandalised. Last night, there were 23 businesses that were looted, and I think if you drive through downtown LA, the graffiti is everywhere and has caused significant damages to businesses and a number of properties,” Bass told a news conference. “So my message to you is: If you do not live or work in downtown LA, avoid the area. Law enforcement will arrest individuals who break the curfew and you will be prosecuted.” Bass said she expected the curfew to remain in effect for several days, but stressed that the order only applied to a small portion of the city, which covers 502 square miles (1,300sq km). Advertisement “I think it is important to point this out, not to minimise the vandalism and violence that has taken place there – it has been significant – because it is extremely important to know that what is happening in this 1 square mile is not affecting the city,” Bass said. “Some of the imagery of the protests and the violence gives the appearance that this is a city-wide crisis, and it is not.” Bass’s order came as protests against the Trump administration’s raids on suspected undocumented migrants entered a fifth night in Los Angeles, and as demonstrations spread to dozens of other US cities, including New York, Chicago and Atlanta. Trump’s immigration crackdown and deployment of the National Guard and Marines against protesters have drawn condemnation from California officials, who have accused the president of abusing his authority and fanning tensions. In an address to Californians on Tuesday night, California Governor Gavin Newsom blasted Trump’s use of military force as a “brazen abuse of power”. “That’s when the downward spiral began. He doubled down on his dangerous National Guard deployment by fanning the flames even harder, and the president – he did it on purpose,” Newsom said. Newsom, who has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s deployment of troops against his wishes, said the president had unleashed a “military dragnet” targeting “dishwashers, gardeners, day labourers and seamstresses” rather than violent criminals. “That’s just weakness – weakness masquerading as strength. Donald Trump’s government isn’t protecting our communities, they’re traumatising communities, and that seems to be the entire point,” Newsom said. “California will keep fighting.” Advertisement “If some of us can be snatched off the streets without a warrant, based only on suspicion or skin colour, then none of us are safe,” he added. “Authoritarian regimes begin by targeting people who are least able to defend themselves. But they do not stop there.” Reporting from a vigil against the raids in Los Angeles, Al Jazeera’s Teresa Bo said that protesters are rejecting the Trump administration’s characterisation of the raids as being aimed at violent criminals. “Many of the people we have spoken to here say that they are wrong – that they are working people who have come to this country to find a better life,” Bo said. “That’s why most of the people who are here are extremely angry, and they are demanding an end to the raids.” Bo said the activists she spoke to also stressed the need to keep the demonstrations peaceful. “This is something that we’ve been hearing over and over,” she said. “They say that the main reason they need to be peaceful is because violence gives Donald Trump an excuse to use the military, to the use National Guard on the streets of Los Angeles.” Earlier on Tuesday, Trump doubled down on his decision to mobilise troops against protesters amid growing condemnation. “Generations of army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness here at home, like is happening in California,” Trump told US Army soldiers during a visit to Fort Bragg in North Carolina. “As commander-in-chief, I will not let that happen. It’s never going to happen.” Advertisement Adblock test (Why?)