for years, bob and i had offices next to each other. more recently, we called our wing the elder hostel. it was there that i had the privilege of getting to know bob strauss that not everyone saw. the strauss who once asked me to check up on a lawyer that he read the riot act just to make sure the man was not permanently scarred. the big shot who supported those who worked closest to him. cathy ellingsworth and tony robinson were treated just like his own family.

their mutual respect and loyalty for one another knew no boundaries. the man who loved his tables, but got up every morning to make breakfast for helen. the charmer of every woman he met who could not wait to get home every night to the wife he worshiped and the martini they shared. bob absolutely loved helen. for six decades, strauss was constantly, insistently, urgently saying to her -- "helen, how do i love thee? let me count the ways. i love thee to the death and

and breadth and height my soul can reach when feeling out of sight through the ends of being an ideal grace. i love thee with the breath, smiles, tears of all my life, and if god chooses, i shall but love thee better after death." that was not the strauss you saw on "meet the press" or on the pages of the "post" or in the smoke-filled rooms of the convention. the man from stanford, texas, had a big heart. he helped a lot of people, not just in the ways that were public like the strauss center for international security and law or the endowed chairs at the medical center of the university of texas. there were countless acts of quiet generosity covering the difference when his dnc staff's

medical premiums rose putting millions into the firm retirement fund in which he had excluded himself. paying for a former employee's way through business school. asking in return only that one day the young man do the same for another. mixed in with all the bluster and the glib remarks, there was a refreshing sentimentality to bob strauss. like in a corporate board meeting, when he leaned over to me and said, "vernon, look around this room. it was not intended that we should be here. a jew from texas and a black from the housing projects of atlanta. vernon, i wish my parents could see me here in this board room

sitting next to you." strauss remained conscious and amused that the son of a dry goods store owner had come all this way. bob strauss was the warmest, kindest, most caring blowhard you have ever met. [laughter] he was also honest, thoughtful, and unfailingly loyal. that is how i remember him. a friend, a partner, a mentor, a mensch, if i may use that word. when he left the dnc, strauss said in his typically modest way, "i would hate to be the guy

who has got to follow my act." [laughter] but the truth is nobody ever could and nobody ever will. we shall not forget the likes of robert s. strauss again and we shall not see the likes of robert s. strauss again for he has fought the good fight. he has finished his course. he has kept the faith. after 95 long and astonishingly productive years, robert strauss has closed his last deal. negotiated his last merger. served his last president. hired his last editor. flattered his last secretary.

given his last interview. bet on his last horse. drunk his last martini. shared his last holiday dinner with the family he adored. reflecting back on his life, strauss would say he liked the whole damn deal. we liked it, too. we are honored to have shared it with him. washington and the world will not be the same without robert s. strauss. >> in his weekly address, president obama urged congress to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. house speaker john boehner gave the republican address.

>>hi, everybody. my state of the union address that talked about pizza. i talked about it pizza chain in minneapolis whose owner made a business decision to give his employees a raise to 10 bucks an hour. a couple of weeks ago i got a letter from a small business owner who watched that night. an immigrant who owns her own anothernt plans to open one this summer. she wrote, i was moved by john story.'s the got me thinking about my employees and their ability to survive on eight dollars an hour in new york city. put planss ago, she wages ofto raise the h her employees to $10 an hour. here is a thing area she is not

just raising their wages because it is the right thing to do, she's doing it for the same .eason that john serrano did it it makes good business sense. will allow us to attract and retain better talent, reduce employee churn and training costs. doing so makes good business sense while at the same time having a positive impact on the community. yasmin is right. ago, i asked for federal workers to be paid a fair wage of at least $10 an hour. in order to make a difference for every american, congress needs to do something and american knows it. right now, there's a bill that would boost america's minimum wage to $10 and $.10 an hour. raise to wait for 28 million americans across the country. we are not just talking about

young people on their first job, the average minimum wage worker is 35 years old. iny work hard, often physically demanding jobs. while not all of us always see i to eye politically, one thing we overwhelmingly agree on is that nobody who works full-time should ever have to live in poverty. that is why nearly three in four americans support raising the minimum wage. the problem is, republicans in congress don't support raising the minimum wage. some even want to get rid of it entirely. in oklahoma, the republican governor just signed a law prohibiting cities from establishing their own a minimum wage. that is why this fight is so important. that is what people like john and yasmin are giving their employees a raise. that is why several states, counties and cities are going around congress to raise their workers wages. that is why i will keep up this fight, because we know that our economy as a whole works best when it works for all of us, not

just a fortunate few. we believe we do better when everyone who works hard has a chance to get ahead. that is what opportunity is all about. if you agree with us, we could use your help. republicans have voted more than 50 times to undermine or repeal health care for millions of americans. they should vote at least once to raise the minimum wage for millions of working families. if a republican in congress represents you, tell him or her it is time to give the politics a rest for a while and do something to help working americans. it isime for 10.10, time to give working america raised. thanks and have a good weekend. >> i'm speaking to you from ohio. this is about 25 m