happy hump day. welcome to "the reid report," i'm joy reid. let me say, wow, what a day. later this hour, president obama speaks from connecticut on the fight to raise the federal minimum wage. we have announcements straight ahead. we'll take you there live as soon as the speech begins. we're waiting on a news conference from paris. secretary of state john kerry and the possibility of a diplomatic solution in ukraine all coming up. we'll have the latest as those things develop. we start with the fireworks over the potomac this morning. one of the gop's favorite attacks on the white house. no, i'm not talking about today's 50th vote to dund or repeal bicycle -- defund or repeal obamacare. happy birthday anyway, gop, your hatred of obamacare doesn't look a day over 49. no, i'm talking about the high drama of at all things a house government overnight sight hearing. the committee that has spent --

oversight hearing. committee that has spent your tax dollars and resources investigating the irs and its oversight for politically active nonprofit. committee chair isa is again led the attack as republicans try to find any proof that officials at the agency were directed to conduct audits of conservative groups that spent money in the last two elections. the republican conspiracy theory is that the audits were politically motivated, and they insinuate that they may have been directed by the white house. despite the incurable fever for this story on the right and in conservative media, issa's committee has yet to turn up any actual evidence. so today, once again, the oversight committee called former top irs official lois lerner to testify. and issa asked a series of ten questions to which lerner, as highway is did more than nine months ago, pleaded the fifth each time. they gavelled the hearing to a close less than 12 minutes after it began and without allowing a single democratic member to ask a question. the democrats' ranking member

elijah cummings, was not having it. for 90 second after issa gavelled the hearing closed, congressman cummings attempted to make his voice heard until chairman issa cut off mr. cummings' mic and attempted to walk out of the hearing. watch. >> for the past year, the central republican accusation in this investigation -- >> we're adjourned. close it down. >> minimal solution -- [ inaudible ] >> thank you. >> while you can cut off a mic, you can't cut off a congressman like elijah cummings. not when he's this hot and has a relationship this strained and tempestuous with the chairman. >> he was not asking any questions. he was determined -- >> mr. cummings said that he had questions to ask and instead began making an opening statement. even after the committee had been adjourned. therefore, we adjourned. >> was it a bipartisan hearing?

not one member of the democratic side had an opportunity to say one scintilla, one syllable before the chairman adjourned. that's not -- that's not bipartisan. >> and that was it. nope -- not hardly. once both men were finished, they took their fight outside the hearing room with each man denouncing the tactics of the other party. first, chairman issa, then ranking member cummings went at it. and we are joined by democratic congressman steven horseford, at today's hearing. wow. please explain what happened in your estimation, congressman. >> thank you, joy. this is a very sad day in the house oversight and government reform committee. if anybody had any doubts about chairman issa and the house republican wanting to make this issue partisan and political, you don't need to look any further than the speck techal of the house over-- spectacle of

the house oversight and reform committee. i take my job seriously, and for the chairman to deny a member from the other side -- particularly our ranking member, mr. cummings, the inability to ask a question after he spent more than 12 questions asking questions of miss lerner as the chairman and then gaveling the meeting to adjournment is un-democratic. it's disrespectful and downright wrong. >> i want to play a little more of congressman cummings, just the sound of him today. he was obviously very angry. as you're describing, felt the democrats didn't got an opportunity. let's listen, and then we'll come back. >> i am a member of the congress of the united states of america. i am -- [ inaudible ] we have never -- we represent 700,000 people. you can not just have a one-sided investigation. it is absolutely -- there's something wrong with, that and

it is absolutely un-american. >> hear, hear. >> and you're a member of the committee. is the way it's been going? this investigation, democrats believe it's partisan. chairman issa denies it. is this really the extent to which the relationships on that committee have broken down? is this sort of standard procedure, or was this unusual today? >> well, it definitely was escalated beyond what is reasonable in my view, and what the american people expect. the chairman, chairman issa, the republicans, have spent $14 million of taxpayer money on a witch hunt trying to associate the white house to something that's simply the evidence does not support. the democrats on the other hand have said let the facts speak for themselves. let both sides be heard. allow the testimony to come forward. and determine where that leads. chairman issa wants to conclude the facts before he allows them

to come forward. >> all right. quickly, have you heard any evidence that links the white house in any way to the oversight of 501 c4 groups? >> not only is there not any evidence, but if all the hearings that we've held, the 38-some employees who have testified on the record, there is no evidence whatsoever to associate the white house in this -- there was wrongdoing by the irs, and that should be held accountable. but to associate that with the white house is simply wrong, and it's irresponsible. >> all right. congressman steven horseford, thank you very much. >> thank you. in a few minutes, we will dive deeper to this mess and talk with some washington insiders about whether this whole thing was really just pure politics. and now a quick update on efforts to bring a peaceful solution to the crisis in ukraine. we're expecting a news conference shortly with secretary of state john kerry who's continued his efforts to bring the russians on board. meeting today with their foreign minister and earlier in the day,

secretary kerry met with representatives of the u.n. security council where he read a 1994 agreement he says was violated by russia's invasion. >> the united states of america and federation and united kingdom of great britain reaffirm the position to refrain or threat of use of force against political independence of ukraine. so there are very clear legal obligations that are at risk in this. and we're going to talk about those here this morning. >> and while the e.u. today offered ukraine a $15 billion aid package, reports are that house members in d.c. are working on sanctions against russia over the invasion. congress and the white house also are working on a billion-dollar aid deal for ukraine. loan guarantees and election help are reportedly part of the package. and both could come as early as tomorrow. meanwhile, you're looking at live pictures from connecticut

where president obama is making his big push to raise the minimum wage. he's set to speak at the bottom of the hour. we will be on top of it. [ thunder crashes ] [ female announcer ] some people like to pretend a flood could never happen to them. and that their homeowners insurance protects them. [ thunder crashes ] it doesn't. stop pretending. only flood insurance covers floods. ♪

visit floodsmart.gov/pretend to learn your risk. life could be hectic. as a working mom of two young boys angie's list saves me a lot of time. after reading all the reviews i know i'm making the right choice. online or on the phone, we help you hire right the first time. with honest reviews on over 720 local services. keeping up with these two is more than a full time job, and i don't have time for unreliable companies. angie's list definitely saves me time and money. for over 18 years we've helped people take care of the things that matter most. join today. so our business can be on at&t's network for $175 a month? yup. all 5 of you for $175. our clients need a lot of attention. there's unlimited talk and text. we're working deals all day. you get 10 gigabytes of data to share. what about expansion potential? add a line, anytime, for $15 a month. low dues, great terms. let's close! new at&t mobile share value plans

our best value plans ever for business.

you're looking live at central connecticut state university in new britain, connecticut. president obama will make his case for raising the minimum wage just minutes from now. we'll bring you live coverage ahead on the "reid report." meanwhile, today was supposed to be congressman darrell issa's big day. finally he'd get irs official lois learner to testify under oath -- lois lerner to testify under oath about the irs controversy and would link it directly to the white house. >> you understand you have late-breaking news. >> we do. her attorney indicates that she will testify. it's been a back-and-forth

negotiation. frankly, we believe that the evidence we've gathered causes her in her best interest to be someone who should testify. >> let me make sheer, lois lerner, former irs official who took the fifth last may, will testify before your committee? >> wow. that's huge news. it turns out it was also news to lerner's attorney who immediately told "politico" that issa was wrong. and issa was wrong. spleeded the fifth. but then issa once again denieded that this hearing isn't about politics. >> how much of this is a political position -- >> none. not a decision of it. not a smidgeon of it. >> really, not about politics? huh. did anyone ask the ranking democrat about that? yes, it turns out someone did. >> the question, is this a bipartisan hearing? not one member of the democratic side had an opportunity to say

one scintilla, one syllable before the chairman adjourned. that's not -- that's not bipartisanship. >> joining me, "washington post" columnist and senior reporter. thank you for being here thanks. i want to play one more time congressman elijah cummings. the question of whether or not the hearing was political, i think congressman cummings got to the heart of the discussion. let's listen and come back. >> i am a member of the congress of the united states of america! i am -- >> well -- >> we have members over here who represent 700,000 people. you cannot just have a one-sided investigation! there is absolutely something wrong with. that that is absolutely un-american. hear, hear! >> and dana millbank, you were in the hearing room. is this what the committee has descended to, or are we seeing the breakdown starting now over the irs issue?

or is this something that's been building for a long time? >> darrell issa is right that it's bipartisan in the sense that one party was protesting on the other party was unplugging the sound familiar, if that's his definition of bipartisanship. this is a further deterioration of how things have gone over not just with the irs but with benghazi, with all the things darrell issa has done. and in each case he comes out with this provocative accusation that whatever the scandal is, it is going to high levels in the white house. each time he's come up empty. what he's done when democrats tried to point this out is in varying ways shot them down and moved things along here. so this was certainly, you know, breathtaking. there were literally gasps in the room when you saw him shut down his democratic counterpart that way. it's just -- it's an escalation, but in a series of events that have been leading up to this. >> and so a good point made by

dana is this is not just one issue, right? there are series of investigations that darrell issa launched making sort of big promises, big insinuations about finding wrongdoing and nefarious behavior in the white house and not delivering. congressman horseford, who was just in the previous block, said that $14 million has been spent on this. at some point, are we starting to see a backlash among republican members that maybe darrell issa might be a little wasting their time? >> i'm not sure about republican members. remember, it's an election year, and it helps to have a scandal again the party in the white house in an election year when you're the party out of power, especially when you hold the oversight gavel and your party expects you to be the guy to get scalped and embarrass the white house and administration. that's sort of darrell issa's game here. it's very difficult to believe that there's not a political element to this. you know, if issa were to have more evidence regarding the irs or some sort of smoking gun that connected to the white house that we haven't seen yet, that would be one thing. he hasn't come one. this now-- come up with this.

i think he's succeeded in keeping this in the news. whatever it was that he accomplished today in terms of press coverage and whatnot will be seen in a certain light and will help conservatives sort of believe more in their narrative that there is a cover-up here, that this was an act of political retribution. let's remember the actual story is not that simple. it's much more complicated. the irs -- what this really is is the sale of the irs mismanaging a flood of new applications from money groups after the citizens united ruling. and you know, their inability to manage that properly. so they started taking shortcuts like targeting tea party groups and targeting groups that they occupy. the narrative is not as simple as chairman issa wants it to be. it's a very lucrative thing. a very powerful thing to tell conservatives in an election year. >> i mean, mismanaging -- i want to go back to you. mismanaging -- i want to look at in december, there was a proposed rule that the irs was floating to change the way that these groups are looked at. here's the problem -- although the internal revenue code requires 051 c4 organizations

has long-standing irs regulat n regulations interpret exclusively as primarily. there is no definition of primarily in the regularulations. that's something that our colleague, lawrence o'donnell, host, was the first to point out s. it improper if the irs was actually looking at the letter of the law and it said exclusively and they were trying to interpret that with this flood of tea party groups that were, hey, political asking to be taxi exempt? i'm not sure why we're still calling this a scandal. >> well, look, the inspector general internally said that it is improper and shouldn't be done. that's very different from saying this was, a, politically motivated or, b, directed at the white house or out of high level in washington. what darrell issa's done along the way is sort of cherrypicked the information, put out selective bits that suggest it was politically motivated and tamping down and suppressing much more voluminous evidence that said there was no political

motivation from what these multiple investigators have found. and you know, he was hoping to ignite that again with lois lerner today. and i think what he did is he could have had the footage of her pleading the fifth over and over again, which might have hurt the administration. instead, we see darrell issa unplugging the microphone. he's again made the story about him and his actions as opposed to the investigations of this administration. so if i were the republicans, i'd be disappointed in darrell issa, that he has made the story about himself rather than about the administration. >> right. and the footage of darrell issa unplugging the microfountains and congressman -- microphones, and congressman cummings reading him on the floor. that is the footage going out. i'm wondering if this emboldens democrats to stop doing the on the one hand, the other hand, yeah, maybe the irs was wrong, and to start fighting back against something that is only called a scandal because that's the most convenient word to use.

>> i think it certainly does embolden democrats. i think it was a huge error on chairman issa's part to cut the mic of the ranking member's committee who at least had the right to make an opening statement. remember, this is not the first time a top democrat lost his cool and started yelling at issa during a hearing. last year, attorney general eric holder of being berated and at one point lost it and said, "your conduct is shameful and unacceptable." i wonder if they force the democrats to deal with him long enough they'll yell and freak out. >> i wonder when does darrell issa jump the shark within his own party. big promises. no deliver. thank you. >> thanks. you are looking live at central connecticut state university where minutes from now president obama will speak. he is ratcheting up his push to hike the minimum wage. we will bring that to you live coming up.

christina wilson had a network of friends. opera singers, actors, musicians who needed part-time work. and she had a sense of parents who were in need of creative baby sitters. she started sitter studio. now they're caring for kids across the city. if i can impart one lesson to a new business owner, it would be one thing i've learned is my philosophy is real simple american express open forum is an on-line community, that helps our members connect and share ideas to make smart business decisions. if you mess up, fess up. be your partners best partner. we built it for our members, but it's open for everyone. there's not one way to do something. no details too small. american express open forum. this is what membership is. this is what membership does.

[ mala body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. celebrex can be taken with or without food.

and it's not a narcotic. you and your doctor should balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen, naproxen and meloxicam have the same cardiovascular warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure or when nsaids are taken for long periods. nsaids, like celebrex, increase the chance of serious skin or allergic reactions, or stomach and intestine problems, such as bleeding and ulcers, which can occur without warning and may cause death. patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. don't take celebrex if you have bleeding in the stomach or intestine, or had an asthma attack, hives, other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history. and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion.

president obama has begun speaking and making his introductions at central connecticut state university part of his big push for a hike in the minimum wage. giving the nation's lowest paid workers a pay raise from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour. it's become a key for democrats in the run-up to the election. 21 states plus the district of columbia are already paying workers more than the $7.25 an hour. in connecticut, 71% supporting raising the minimum wage according to a new quinnipiac poll. a move the governor supports. the goal is to help income inequality light a fire under the democratic base that need to come out in the midterm elections that historically do not. that include younger americans, single women, minority voters who fail to turn out -- failed to turn out in sufficient numbers in 2010. so far it looks like a winning strategy. polls show it is a winner. the abc news/"washington post"

latest poll finding 54% of those all-important 15 to 49 voters more likely to support a candidate that would hike the minimum wage. among independents, support is 50%, getting both of those groups to the polls very key to democrats in november. meanwhile, the president is not alone in making this push. he's praised corporations large and small, for getting on board on their own and raising the workers' pay. that includes companies like the gap and, of course, we know that there are people who are detractors, giving lower income people more money, not popular with everyone, not naming names. they're going to have a problem with, it however. now let's listen to the president as he gets going. >> like the justice league of governors. [ laughter ] >> i call them the new england patriots -- i'd call them the new england patriots, but that name is already taken. [ laughter ] >>. >> i love you back! i love you.

[ applause ] we can't just spend the whole day talking about how we love each other. that's not why i came. [ laughter ] >> we are here today -- we're here today because each of us cares deeply about creating new jobs and new opportunities for all americans. and we're at this interesting moment in our economy. our economy's been growing. our businesses have created 8.5 million new jobs over the past four years. the unemployment rate is the lowest it's been in over five years. those are all -- those all things that we should be proud of. but there are some trends out there that have been battering the middle class for a long, long time. well before this great recession hits. in some ways, some trends have gotten worse, not better. the nature of today's economy

with technology and globalization means that there are folks at the top who are doing better than ever, but average wages have barely budged. average incomes have not gone up. too many americans working harder than ever just to keep up. so as i said at my state of the union address, we've got to reverse those trends. it is a central task for all of us to build an economy that works for everybody, not just for some. [ applause ] >> that's what every one of those governors and tom perez believes in. that's what we got into public service for. i hope dan and peter don't mind me -- me sharing this. while we were driving over, they were talking about the fact that when they were growing up, both of them had dyslexia.

and because of the incredible fierce love of their parents but also because there were some folks there to help them, they achieved -- made these extraordinary achievements. now, i wasn't in the car with duval, but duval's a close friend. a similar story -- grew up on the south side of chicago. [ cheers ] >> and -- you know, came from a very modest background. but somebody gave him a chance. you know, me, tom perez, so many of us understand that at the heart of america, the central premise of this country is the chance to achieve your dreams if

you work hard, if you take responsibility. but it doesn't matter where you start, it's where you finish. [ applause ] . >> and in america we believe in opportunity for all. we believe success shouldn't be determined by the stock markets of o -- by the circumstances of our birth, but by a society that's committed to everyone to succeed. doesn't matter what you look like, where you come from, what your last name is, who you love, what matters is -- [ cheers ] >> the strength of your work ethic and the power of your dreams and your willingness to take responsibility for yourself but also for the large of society. that's what makes america the place that it is. why it continues to be a beacon attracting people from all around the world. the idea that you can make it here if you try.

there's been a lot of -- a lot of news about foreign affairs around the world over the last several days, but also for the last couple years. and one of the things that you s see, a trend you see, it doesn't matter whether it's in central europe or the middle east or -- africa, individuals want a chance to make it if they try. what makes it special is we already do that when we're at our best. but we've got work to do to match up our ideals with the reality that's happening on the ground right now. and the opportunity agenda that i've laid out is designed to help us restore that idea of opportunity for everybody, for this generation. the generation of young people

studying here and about to enter the work force. and it's got four parts. part one is something that i know the seniors are interested in which is more good jobs that pay good wages. [ applause ] we can't be satisfied with just recovering the jobs that were lost during the recession. we've got to build the economy so it's creating a steady supply of good jobs today and well into the future. jobs in high-tech manufacturing and in energy and in exports for in american innovation. that's job number one. job number two is training more american with the skills they need to fill those good jobs. so that our work force is prepared for the jobs of tomorrow. part three, guaranteeing every young people access to a good education from pre-k all the way

to college education like the one you're getting here. [ applause ] >> that's why over the past five years working with the outstanding congressional delegation from connecticut, we've been able to make sure that dollars are going farther than before. we took on a student loan system that gave billions of taxpayer dollars to the big banks. and we said let's use those to give more students directly the help they need to afford to go to college. [ applause ] that's why we're offering millions of young people the chance to cap their monthly student loan payments at 10% of their income. so you need to check that out. go to the -- go to the website, the department of education, and find out how you may be eligible for that. today more young people are earning college degrees than ever before. [ applause ]

and i know you won't disagree -- we've got to do more to rein in the soaring costs of college and help americans trapped by student loan debt. [ applause ] >> bottom line is whether it's technical training, community college, four-year university, no -- no young person should be priced out of a higher education. [ applause ] >> shouldn't happen. now there's a fourth part of this agenda. by the way, i just noticed, if you've got chairs, feel free to sit down. [ laughter ] >> i know the folks here don't have chairs. but, you know -- i don't want you guys -- and if you're standing up, make sure to bend your knees so you don't faint. [ laughter ]

>> point number four, the fourth -- the fourth component of this opportunity agenda is making sure that if you are working hard, if you're working hard, then you get ahead. that mean making sure women receive equal pay for equal work. [ cheers and applause ] >> when women succeed, america succeeds. i believe that. rosa agrees with that. [ applause ] it means making sure that you can save or retire with digniti, it means health insurance that's there when you're sick and need

it most. and -- and you guys are doing a great job implementing the affordable care act here in connecticut. if any of you know a young person who is uninsured, help them get covered at healthcare.g healthcare.gov. the website works just fine now. they've got until march 31st to sign up. and in some cases, it's going to cost less than your cell phone bill. check it out, healthcare.gov. and it means a wage a paycheck that lets you support a family. a wage, a paycheck that lets you support a family. i want to be clear because sometimes in our debates with our friends on the other side of the political spectrum, this may not be clear. so let me just repeat it once

again. as americans that some folks are going to earn more than others. we don't resent success, we are thrilled with the opportunities that america affords. somebody goes out and starts a business, that drives the economy. that's why in their free market economy is the most dynamic on earth. we're thrilled with that. everybody agrees on that. but what we also believe is that nobody who works full time should ever have to raise a family in poverty. [ applause ] >> that violates a basic sense of who we are. [ applause ] >> and that's why it's time to give america a raise. [ applause ] >> it is time to give america a raise! now's the time.

now is the time. a year ago i asked congress to raise the minimum wage. the federal minimum wage. since that time, six states have passed laws to raise their including right here in connecticut. [ applause ] >> on january 1st, tens of thousands acrossity state got a raise. and governor malloy is working to lift wages even higher. [ applause ] >> hawaii -- hawaii, illinois, maryland, minnesota, washington state, other states, counties, cities across the country are working to raise their minimum wage as we speak. the governor's here today, clof chafee of rhode island, governor malloy, governor someone of

vermont and a -- and a governor who couldn't be here today, maggie astin, of new hampshire. all are fighting to give hard-working folks in these great new england states a raise of their own. and they formed a regional coalition to raise the minimum wage. if they succeed in their effort, new england will have some of the highest minimum wages in the country. [ applause ] and they're not -- they're not stopping there. they're here in support of raising america's minimum wage. the federal minimum wage, to $10.10 an hour. [ applause ] >> $10.10 an hour. now, raising wages is not just a job for elected official. in my state of the union address, i asked more business leaders to do what they can to

raise their workers' wages because profitable companies like costco have long seen higher wage as good business. it's a smart way to boost productivity, to reduce turnover. to instill loyalty in employees. by the way, they do great, the stocks do great, they are highly profitable. it's not bad business to do right by your workers, it's good business. [ applause ] it's good business. two weeks ago, the gap decided to raise its base wages. and that's going to boost wages for 65,000 workers in the united states. last week -- [ applause ] >> last week i read about jacksons. an ice cream parl nor in florid that's been in business since

1956. they announced they would lift workers' wages to at least $10.10 an hour without cutting back on hiring. [ applause ] >> two weeks ago in atlanta, a small business owner named darrian sutherland wrote to share a lesson his granny taught him. if you treat your employees right, they'll treat you right. [ applause ] >> you got to listen to your grandmother. that is -- that is some wise advice. and i agree with the business leader, as well. so what i did as president, i signed an executive order requiring federal contractors -- if you're doing business with the federal government, pay your employees a fair wage of at least 10.10 an hour. which would be good for america's bottom line.

[ applause ] >> let may tell you who was affected. when i was signing the bill, the executive order, we had workers who were going to be affected -- you've got workers who were, you know, cooking the meals of our troops, washing their dishes or -- or cleaning their clothes. this country should pay those folks a wage you can live on. [ applause ] >> so this is good for business, it is good for business, it is good for america. even though we're bringing manufacturing jobs back to the united states, creating more good jobs in education and health care and business services, there will always be airport workers. there are always going to be fast food workers. there are always going to be hospital workers. there are going to be retail salespeople want hospitality workers. people who work their tails off every day. [ applause ]

>> people who work in nursing homes looking after your grandparents or your parents. folks who are doing all the hard jobs that make our society work. every single day. they don't have anything flashy out. there they're not expecting to get rich. they do feel like if they're putting in back-breaking work every day, that at least at the end of the month they can pay their bills. >> i know that's right! [ applause ] >> they deserve an honest day's pay for an honest day's work. working americans have struggled through stagnant wages for too long. my goal and the goal of everybody on this stage is to help lift wages, help lift take-home pay in any way we can. that's why i've done everything

i can to lift wages for hard-working federal contractors. it's why i asked business owners to raise their wages. it's why i'm supporting elected officials at the local level, governors. what every american wants is a paycheck that lets them support their families, economic security, pass down hope and optimism to their kids. and that's worth fighting for. [ applause ] >> so i want to make one last point. if we're going to finish the job, congress has to get on board. congress has to get on board. [ applause ] >> this is interesting -- this should not be that hard, you'd think. nearly three in four americans, about half of all republicans, support raising the minimum wage. the problem is, republicans in congress oppose raising the minimum wage. now i don't know if that's just because i proposed it -- maybe i

should say i oppose raising the minimum wage. they'd be for it, that's possible. but right now there's a bill in front of the house and senate that would boost the minimum wage -- easy to remember, 1010, $10.10 an hour. just passing this bill would help not only minimum wage workers, it would -- it would lift wages for about 200,000 people just right here in connecticut. it would lift wages for about one million new englanders. it would lift wages for nearly 28 million americans across the country. [ applause ] >> it would immediately raise millions of people out of poverty. it would help millions more work their way out of poverty, and it

doesn't require new taxes. doesn't require new spending. doesn't require some new bureaucracy. and here's one last point. it turns out what happens if workers got a little more money in their pockets? they spend a little more money which means that suddenly businesses have more customers, which means they make more profits. which means they can hire more workers. which means you get a virtuous cycle. it's common sense. that's what i'm trying to say. that's all i'm trying to say. [ cheers and applause ] >> it's just common sense. that's all it is, just common sense! [ applause ] >> common sense. it's just common sense. that's all i'm saying.

[ laughter [ laughter ] >> now, right now republicans in congress don't want to vote on raising the minimum wage. some have actually said they just want to scrap the minimum wage. one of them said, i think it's outlived its usefulness. i vote it repeal the minimum wage. [ boos ] wheth >> one said it's never worked. some even said it only helps young people. now as if that's a bad thing. i think we should want to help young people. i'd like to see them try putting themselves through college on a low-wage work study job. [ applause ] >> actually i'd like to see them supporting a family making less than $15,000 a year. but here's the truth about who it would help -- most people who

would get a raise making the minimum wage are not teenagers their first job. their average age is 35. a majority of lower wage jobs are held by women. these americans are working full time. often supporting families. and if the minimum wage had kept pace with our economy's productivity, they'd already be earning well over $10 an hour today. instead, it's stuck at $7.25. every time congress refuses to raise it, it loses value because the cost of living goes higher, minimum wage stays the same. right now it's worth 20% less than it was when ronald reagan took office. and thins over the last year, since i asked congress to do something and they didn't do it, that was the equivalent of a $200 pay cut for the average minimum wage worker because it didn't keep pace with inflation. that's a month of groceries for the average minimum wage worker. that's two months worth of electricity. this is not a small thing. this is a big deal. it makes a big difference in the

lives of a lot of family. [ applause ] so members of congress have a choice to make. it is a clear choice. raise workers' wage, grow our economy, or let wages stagnate further, give workers what amount to another pay cut. fortunately folks in connecticut have a really good delegation. your senator and folks are on boardment they're on board. [ applause ] >> anybody who's watching at home, you deserve to know where your elected official stands. so just ask them. do you support raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour? if they say yes, say, thanks. great job. we need encouragement, too,

elected officials. if they say no, you should be polite. but you should say," n "why not ask them to reconsider. side with the majority of working americans. instead of saying no for once, say yes. it's time for 1010. it's time for america to get a raise. [ applause ] >> i want to close by sharing a story of a ghiuy named doug wad. where is doug? stand up. there's doug right here. >> doug had a chance it meat secretary perez in hartford last week. doug is the president of wade's dairy down in bridgeport. [ applause ] so his great grandfather, frank is, that right?

frank. frank started the family business in 1893. 1893. one of the secrets to their success is that they treat their employees like part of the family. so doug pays his own workers fairly. but he goes a step further. he write editorials, he talks to fellow business leaders. he meets with elected officials to make the case for a higher minimum wage for everybody. keep in mind, doug spent most of his life as a registered republican. this is not about politics. this is about common sense. it's about business sense. [ applause ] >> and -- and doug -- we were talking -- backstage, doug showed me a -- a pay stub because he -- it describes his own story. when he was flipping burgers back in 1970, his employer paid him the minimum wage, but it

went 25% further than it does today. so doug speaks from experience when he says that thing like the minimum wage raise the bar for everybody. and highways still got that paycheck. and it looks like the paycheck i got when when i was working at baskin robbins. [ applause ] >> you know, the point that doug and his family and his business represents is we believe in hard work. we believe in responsibility. we believe in individual initiative. but we also come together to raise the bar for everybody. to make sure our fellow citizens can pursue their own dreams, as well. that they can look after their kids and lift them up. we look out for each other. that's who we are. that is our story. [ applause ] >> there are millions of

americans like doug and like all of you who are tired of the old political argument, ready to raise the bar a little higher. let's move this country forward. let's move it up. let's go further. that's what i'm going to do as president as long as i have the honor of serving in this office, and i need your help. let's go out there and give america a raise. god bless you. god bless the united states of america. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> president obama touting the common sense, as he calls it, of raising the minimum wage to dolores t $10.10. touting businesses who have done it, kudos to gap and those that have raised the federal minimum wage. he says it's been sitting a year. also touting the new england coalition of governors including the governor of the state where he is now, connecticut, looking -- who have already acted to raise the state minimum wages and essential at the f all of that happens, you'll have new england with higher wage than other parts of the united

states. i am here with vice president of policy and research at dimo. i want to get your reaction to the president's speech, tamera. >> well, i thought it was great because he start ed out talking about how having a decent minimum wage is a fundamental value. no matter what you do, if you mop floors, flip burgers, care for the elderly, you are contributing to our society, right. and you deserve to have a decent wage. so he started out with the big picture which is so important. then he went on and made the business. >> right. >> right? and what we know from studies, and there was just one in bla bloomberg today that examined the experience of washington state. washington state raised its minimum wage in 1998. over the last 15 years, their minimum wage is now close to $10.10, it's $9.73. they have had more job creation than the united states overall. and the industries that were most opposed to raising the minimum wage in washington state have added more jobs in

washington state. restaurants, hotels, retail. those are the big opponents today in today's debate. and in every state that has raised the minimum wage. you know, at some point we have to say these are the same talking points. it's just a different decade. to experience the concern about job loss has not panned out. >> right. i think that was what the president was trying to make. that companies like costco and the gap have done this, they've raised wages and had more help. what about the idea if you pay people more, they have more to spend, they can get out and boost the economy. what's wrong with the argument? >> joy, there's nothing wrong with the argument. by the way, the president's speech was great. it's wonderful that he can as leadership make his moves at the federal government. he's allowed to do that. and instill business owners and business leaders to raise wage, as well. what strikes my clients, me as a business owner, that's wrong when we come about to something like that is, that you know, the

president fwaux household income going down. and in fact, it has gone down since 2007. so his solution is to turn around and say, well, to fix that problem and to upgrade wages, we just need all businesses to pay their people more. so as a business owner, i'm hearing from the president saying, okay, the economy's been really slow. we've gone through a recession, had all these issues. we've even got health care reform. all these things i'm worrying about as a business owner. now you're going to come to me and say -- and besides that, we need you to pay your employees more because the minimum wage is too low. by the way, most of the clients that i talked to -- i've got about 600 in my firm. i've just a cpa, they pay well above the minimum wage. this only affects a very small amount of the work force. bun but for those who are paid the -- who pay the minimum wage, they've got reasons for doing it. they do take affront as a business owner to have the president say, look, that's not good enough. you need to pay your people more because people need to be earning more. that's where the business community comes from. >> before economic back to

camera, we did just see secretary of state john kerry go by. he is in paris where the talks are going on about the situation in the ukraine. we were looking potential ely f a statement from him. that's why you see john kerry walk by. tamera, that argument is made often by businesses that say, listen, we're trying to also make living here. having the president of the united states use the awesome power of that office to push us to raise wages isn't fair. what would be your response to that? >> mcdonald's, it pick on one company h. over $5 million in profit last year. the idea that they can't afford to pay more, it doesn't pass the smell test. it is the government's job acting on behalf of americans to set the basic rules of the game in our economy. and long, minimum wage has long been one of those basic labor standards. we haven't updated it for almost a decade. and households, families are feeling that pinch. we need to give these workers a raise.

>> quickly -- >> if i can say, first of all, i think your point about mcdonald's and other large companies is absolutely correct. i mean, come on. these guys are making a lot of money and can afford to pay more. but really, you know, from a business perspective, shouldn't the choice be up to the corporation and to their shareholders and employees themselves that are choosing to work at a mcdonald's? you know, do we need the government to have to enforce that rule? if mcdonald's is -- >> the question is, if those workers that you saw there striking for mcdonald's, i'm not sure they have much of a choice. these are a lot of people working for subsistence, say they there's no unions. in a lot of cases, unions are discouraged. it's not as if the workers have the power to negotiate. a lot of times this is subsisten subsistence. it's unfair to put it on them. >> i am in agreement. i can only -- putting on my accounting hat here and -- again, you know, just the cpa, there really is another good alternative to something like this. and that's the earned income tax credit, as well. i mean, that actually is -- a refundable tax credit that a lot of people support that gives low-income people the ability to get --

>> it is -- i wish we had more time to make this argumentment at the end of the day, it's a one-time payment. people need money year round. i'm not sure that government should be subsidizing -- >> that's why that needs to be change. >> i think we can agree on that. i know we didn't have time. thank you very much. that wraps up things for "the reid report." i'll see you tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. eastern. join us on line at thereidreport.com. "the cycle" is up next. i wish you had more time for that segment, too. sounds interesting. good debate. we've got a lot on the ukraine, obviously. following breaking news and breaking diplomatic announcements. we'll bring it to you. also gay rights and the argument over chicken wings. >> i'm on a diet. i don't want to hear that. get married, have a couple of kids, [ children laughing ] move to the country, and live a long, happy life together where they almost never fight about money. [ dog barks ] because right after they get married,

they'll find some financial folks who will talk to them about preparing early for retirement and be able to focus on other things, like each other, which isn't rocket science. it's just common sense. from td ameritrade. with the quicksilver cash back card from capital one, it means unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you purchase, every day. it doesn't mean, "everything... as long as you buy it at the gas station." it doesn't mean, "everything... until you hit your cash back limit." it means earn 1.5% cash back on every purchase, every place, every occasion, all over creation. that's what everything should mean. so consider... what's in your wallet?

that's what everything should mean. ♪ ♪ nothing says, "you're my #1 copilot," like a milk-bone biscuit. ♪ say it with milk-bone.

humans. even when we cross our t's and dot our i's, we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why, at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement and accident forgiveness if you qualify. see what else comes standard at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? cycling in "the cycle," the tame for talking is over. the white house hands putin an ul