Democrats' 2020 agenda carried out by Biden-Harris would hurt working people: Ex-McDonald’s USA CEO Rensi
There's no comparison on which political party is better qualified to improve Americans' quality of life
The 2020 Democratic Convention is now in the history books. The first virtual party convention came to a close on Thursday night when former Vice President Joe Biden accepted his Party’s nomination for president. The focus over four nights on Democrats’ theme of "Uniting America" belies a harmful policy agenda that would separate millions of Americans from the opportunity to earn a paycheck.
DNC PLATFORM SHOULD WAKE UP TRUMP-WARY SUBURBANITES – HERE ARE 7 REASONS WHY Start with the Party's signature platform issue: Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Once considered a fringe demand, Democrats now portray doubling the current federal minimum wage as a common-sense strategy to raise wages. But don't tell that to San Francisco. The City by the Bay--where Kamala Harris launched her political career— learned the hard way that a $15 minimum wage is bad for employees and employers.
A Harvard study linked increases in that city's wage floor to an increase in restaurant closures. In both 2018 and 2019, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the city lost restaurant jobs--even as the economy nationally was booming.
TRUMP RIPS BIDEN OVER FRACKING, ENERGY POLICY: 'GET USED TO NO AIR CONDITIONING' In a meeting last year with the city's Board of Supervisors, one industry veteran warned that the city was becoming "nonviable" for restaurant growth, thanks to stifling mandates and rent costs. And that was before an unprecedented coronavirus pandemic wiped countless operators off the map.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that up to 3.7 million jobs would be lost should Democrats expand San Francisco's disastrous approach to wage rates nationwide. The workplace wipeout from a $15 minimum wage would pale in comparison to the damage if Democrats make good on their threat to essentially outlaw independent contracting. In California AB5 is a law that makes it very difficult for employers to use freelancers and independent contractors. Biden has endorsed expanding this approach nationally--potentially affecting the incomes of up to 57 million freelancers. Labor unions in California developed this self-interested scheme to turn freelancers into full-time employees. That’s because employees could then be turned into dues-paying union members.
DELUSIONAL DEMOCRATS' LIES AND MISLEADING CLAIMS TAKE CENTER STAGE ON SECOND NIGHT OF CONVENTION The collateral damage has been immense: Countless contractors were robbed of their incomes, after the state essentially made it illegal for them to work. One California commentator put it this way: "[The state] destroyed people's entire livelihoods, businesses, and ability to choose how they want to work." This fight will continue on the California ballot this fall with Proposition 22, as gig economy companies--think Lyft and DoorDash--seek to protect gig workers' freedom to work how they want, when they want. The National Black Chamber of Commerce, the National Action Network in Sacramento and Los Angeles, Black Lives Matter Sacramento, local NAACP chapters, and dozens of other community and civil rights leaders have lined up in support. Unfortunately, on the national level, Democrats have sided with their union endorsers against the best interests of hundreds of thousands of gig workers in the state--and millions more nationwide. That the so-called party of workers would side with unions against these same workers isn't surprising. The party's 2020 platform also includes proposals to repeal state "right to work" laws, which protect workers from being forced to pay dues as a condition of employment. The party also proposes mandatory "card check" organizing, which would effectively eliminate the secret ballot vote. (The Berman and Company-managed Center for Union Facts produced a memorable video on the card check concept.)
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE Workers have been rightly skeptical of unions in recent years, voting against representation by unions such as the UFCW and UAW over concerns about corruption and a lack of transparency. Starting Monday, Republicans will have a chance to make their case. They can rightly argue that they're the party of jobs, the party of opportunity--and even, according to a forthcoming book by longtime GOP leader Bob Kabel, the party of equality. An even-handed comparison of the platforms suggests there's no comparison on which political party is better qualified to improve Americans' quality of life.Ed Rensi is the chairman of F.A.T. Brands in Los Angeles. He is a former McDonald's USA CEO.