Oklahoma GOP Governor Signs Ban On Minimum Wage Increase

GOP Governor Mary Fallin

If anyone doesn't believe that the GOP has declared war on the middle and lower classes, look no farther than Oklahoma and Republican Governor Mary Fallin - her name ought to be spelled failing - who signed into a law that bars Oklahoma localities from increasing their minimum wages above the state mandate.  It's the same mindset that one sees in the Virginia GOP which wants to tie the hands of localities who are better positioned to know the needs of their communities than the bumpkins and ignorance embracing members of the GOP who are protected from accountability by their gerrymandered districts.   Huffington Post looks at Fallin's action.  Here are highlights:

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) signed a bill Monday prohibiting cities across the state from establishing mandatory minimum wage and employee benefits, including vacation or sick leave days. 

Advocates of the new law contend that efforts to increase the minimum wage across various municipalities could potentially harm local business communities.

Opponents of the measure view the move by Oklahoma Republicans as retaliation against an initiative underway in Oklahoma City, where organizers have been gathering signatures to raise the city’s minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $10.10, in line with President Barack Obama's federal minimum wage proposal.

The petition, filed by the Central Oklahoma Labor Federation and attorney David Slane, would need to collect 80,000 signatures to reach a statewide vote.

According to a February report by the Congressional Budget Office, raising the minimum wage from its current level of $7.25 to $10.10, while indexing future increases to inflation, would boost collective earnings by $31 billion for 33 million low-wage workers and lift an estimated 900,000 people out of poverty. 

It goes without saying that not only does Fallin oppose measures that would help the poor and less fortunate, but she has been an outspoken opponent of any measures that would provide LGBT citizens with equality under the civil laws.  Personally, I view Ms. Fallin as a foul and evil woman.  Oh, did I mention that she strikes me as a blonde version of the late "DC Madame" who counted numerous Republican politicos among her clients?

DC Madame