'I Would Consider It': Trump's Openness To Raising The Minimum Wage Faces GOP Pushback

Donald Trump is shaking things up again. This time, he's talking about raising the federal minimum wage. During a Sunday interview with NBC, Trump called the current rate of $7.25 per hour a "very low number." When pressed, he added, "There is a level at which you could do it, absolutely. I would consider it. I'd want to speak to the governors."

Big talk. But can he pull it off?

Trump isn't the first to raise a wage hike in GOP circles. Vice President-elect JD Vance backed an $11 minimum wage bill in 2023. Sen. Josh Hawley proposed $15 for companies making more than $1 billion annually. Even Trump has floated wage hikes before. He mentioned $10 in 2016 and even entertained $15 during a 2020 debate.

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But the Republican Party? Not so into it. Rep. Eric Burlison said outright that the minimum wage shouldn't even exist. "If we're going to take a look at it, we should repeal it," he told Business Insider. Ouch.

Even Trump himself didn't act on this issue during his first term. In 2019, he threatened to veto a Democratic bill proposing $15. More recently, during an October McDonald's visit, he dodged wage-related questions.

For now, the GOP still leans on the old "market forces" argument. Rep. Chip Roy of Texas told BI, "I don't think the federal government should be in that business. Let the markets figure out how we can do this stuff."

That said, there's still some GOP support for wage hikes. A bill cosponsored by Vance also gained traction with heavy hitters like Mitt Romney, Susan Collins and Tom Cotton. But even with that bipartisan shine, Senate GOP leaders like Shelley Moore Capito don't see it as a focus. "I just don't see that's going to be an area of emphasis that we're going to go to," she told BI.

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Trump faces an uphill battle. A federal wage hike would need to pass through Congress. There, many Republicans argue against it. Meanwhile, the public seems to favor higher wages. Polls show consistent support, even among Republicans.

The numbers tell another story. In 2023, just 1.1% of hourly workers made $7.25 or less. Many states and cities already have higher minimum wages and businesses have bumped pay amid worker shortages.

Will Trump break GOP orthodoxy again? Or will his wage hike talk fizzle out? With Trump, it's always a wild card.

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