I was listening to Monday's CTSEN debates made available online thanks to the Harford Courant. I was amazed at Blumenthal's reiteration over and over and over that McMahon wants to lower the minimum wage. The topic started when Laurie Perez of FoxCT played a Blumenthal ad attacking McMahon in part for "talking about lowering the minimum wage."
The ad quotes a 9/30/2010 news piece by political and opinion writer Ted Mann of TheDay.com. In this piece Mann writes:
Most notably, McMahon said she believed Congress should consider lowering the
federal minimum wage in times of economic distress for small businesses, such as
the current recession.
Note that Mann gives no quotes for the assertion meaning he is giving his interpretation of McMahon's words. In the article's very next paragraph he gives the quote upon which he has based his interpretation:
"The minimum wage now in our country, I think we've set that and a lot of people have benefited from it in our country, but I think we ought to review how much it ought to be, and whether or not we ought to have increases in the minimum wage," McMahon said.Nowhere in this quote does McMahon talk about lowering the minimum wage, but rather on whether it should be increased or not. And it's not just lowly me who is the lone wolf crying foul on this misrepresentation. For contrast, look at the same story covered on the same day by CT's largest circulation newspaper, The Hartford Courant:
McMahon made a point of telling reporters that she does not favor a repeal of
the minimum wage — "Don't take away that I'm saying that we should scrap minimum wage," she said.
But by mid-afternoon, supporters of McMahon's Democratic opponent, state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, seized on her remarks, using them to reinforce their portrait of a wealthy self-funding Republican who is out of touch with the concerns of Connecticut's working folks.
"We were shocked to learn that Linda McMahon supports lowering the minimum wage," said Jon Green, executive director of the Working Families Party, which announced its endorsement of Blumenthal on Thursday.
The Courant aptly pointed out that it was Jon Green of the ultra-left WFP who claimed McMahon "supported lowering the minimum wage" not McMahon.
Blumenthal tacked on to this false claim laid by Ted Mann and Jon Green, through his issuing of a false attack ad, and upped the ante again on last night's debate.
Although I personally disagree with the positions of both Blumenthal and McMahon and feel that the minimum wage is best left to the states, one thing has been reiterated to me over and over: Blumenthal will distort the truth.
With the likes of Dodd, Nutmeggers cannot afford another dishonest politician in their state.
2 comments:
Sorry to burst your bubble, buddy, but you missed the actual quote.
Ted Mann, The Day: Should it be reduced now? Since businesses are struggling, as you all described? Would you argue for reducing the minimum wage now?
McMahon: "We have got minimum wages in states, we have got minimum wages in the [federal] government, and I think we ought to look at all of those issues in terms of what mandates are being placed on businesses and can they afford them. I think we should get input from our business community. We should listen to our small business operators and we should hear what it is they have to say and how it's impacting their businesses and make some of those decisions."
Talking about businesses not being able to afford the minimum wage sounds more like discussion of lowering, not increasing.
JBBdude:
Thanks for bringing up that point. The full transcript from which you quote is foundhere.
You are right, it does sound like a discussion on lowering because McMahon is answering a question on lowering.
Contrast your opinion, however, with that of Mann's, written as a news piece, the title reading: "McMahon: Congress should consider lowering minimum wage." Again, nowhere in the article or even your quote does McMahaon suggest or imply that Congress should lower minimum wage. Instead, she gave a vague answer which you and Mann have interpreted to your own opinion, an opinion I regard as false.
The fact that McMahon clarified her position during the debates that she is not open to lower the minimum wage makes it even more tenuous for you to hold the opinion that McMahon wants to lower it.
Albeit I respect your right to your interpret McMahon's words any way you wish, the facts point out that at no time did McMahon say she would lower the min wage even though Mann said she said it.
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