{"id":2445431,"date":"2025-06-10T14:40:02","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T18:40:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economic-policies\/"},"modified":"2025-06-10T14:43:36","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T18:43:36","slug":"josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economic-policies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economic-policies\/","title":{"rendered":"Josh Hawley Pushes Failed Left-Wing Economic Policies"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjosh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economic-policies%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2445431&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses Senator Josh Hawley&#8217;s introduction of the &#8220;Higher Wages for American Workers Act,&#8221; which aims to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour and increase it in subsequent years to keep pace with inflation. While Hawley argues that flatlining wages for working Americans necessitate such a rise, the author critiques this approach, citing past failures of minimum wage laws that often lead to negative economic consequences, such as increased unemployment, notably among entry-level workers. The article references economist Thomas Sowell, who argues that minimum wage laws frequently enough create higher unemployment rates in countries that adopt them, as they can price younger workers out of job opportunities.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, it highlights examples from California, where an increase in the minimum wage led to restaurants furloughing workers and raising prices. The author argues that while Hawley may intend to help his constituents, his support for seemingly leftist economic policies could ultimately harm them. The article concludes that pushing for these traditional left-wing economic policies under the guise of populism is not a valid solution.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Josh_Hawley_(53068379487).jpg\">Gage Skidmore\/Wikimedia Commons\/<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/10\/today-in-republicans-being-useless-josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economics\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Today%20In%20Republicans%20Being%20Useless:%20Josh%20Hawley%20Pushes%20Failed%20Left-Wing%20Economics&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/10\/today-in-republicans-being-useless-josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economics\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Today%20In%20Republicans%20Being%20Useless:%20Josh%20Hawley%20Pushes%20Failed%20Left-Wing%20Economics&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/10\/today-in-republicans-being-useless-josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economics\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/10\/today-in-republicans-being-useless-josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economics\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Today%20In%20Republicans%20Being%20Useless:%20Josh%20Hawley%20Pushes%20Failed%20Left-Wing%20Economics&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/10\/today-in-republicans-being-useless-josh-hawley-pushes-failed-left-wing-economics\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Government-mandated minimum wage laws have regularly proven to be a disastrous economic policy. But apparently, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., didn&rsquo;t get the memo.<\/p>\n<p>On Tuesday, Missouri&rsquo;s senior senator <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/josh-hawley-raise-federal-minimum-wage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">introduced<\/a> legislation called the &ldquo;Higher Wages for American Workers Act,&rdquo; which reportedly seeks to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour and &ldquo;call for an increase in subsequent years to&nbsp;match inflation,&rdquo; according to CBS News. The federal minimum wage is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dol.gov\/agencies\/whd\/minimum-wage\/faq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">currently set<\/a> at $7.25 per hour, as specified by the U.S. Department of Labor. <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1536320474\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/03\/26\/senate-dems-claim-censorship-industrial-complex-never-happened-and-if-it-did-it-was-a-good-thing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pro-censorship<\/a> Sen. <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/peter-welch\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Peter Welch<\/a>, D-Vt., co-sponsored the bill, which was provided as an exclusive to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/cbs-news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CBS<\/a>. The <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >outlet regularly runs left-wing propaganda<\/a> on behalf of Democrats, and its <em>60 Minutes<\/em> program <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/02\/06\/new-video-shows-cbs-deceptively-edited-kamala-harris-interview-during-2024-campaign\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">deceptively edited<\/a> Kamala Harris&rsquo; 2024 campaign interview to make her appear less dumb to voters.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement provided to the outlet, Hawley claimed that &ldquo;[f]or decades, working Americans have seen their&nbsp;wages&nbsp;flatline,&rdquo; and that &ldquo;[o]ne major culprit of this is the failure of the federal minimum wage to keep up with the economic reality facing hard-working Americans every day.&rdquo; &ldquo;This bipartisan legislation would ensure that workers across America benefit from higher wages,&rdquo; the GOP senator added.  <\/p>\n<p>While these types of leftist-backed policies sound nice on the surface, <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/06\/14\/shocker-californias-minimum-wage-hike-leads-to-job-cuts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">numerous real-world examples and data<\/a> have demonstrated that minimum wage laws harm the very workers Hawley claims he&rsquo;s trying to help. <\/p>\n<p>Writing in 2013, famed economist Dr. Thomas Sowell <a href=\"https:\/\/capitalismmagazine.com\/2013\/09\/minimum-wage-madness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted<\/a> how &ldquo;[a]dvocates of minimum wage laws often give themselves credit for being more &lsquo;compassionate&rsquo; towards &lsquo;the poor,&rsquo;&rdquo; but &ldquo;they seldom bother to check what are the actual consequences of such laws.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Countries with minimum wage laws almost invariably have higher rates of unemployment than countries without minimum wage laws,&rdquo; Sowell wrote. &ldquo;There is nothing mysterious about the fact that most people start off in entry level jobs that pay much less than they will earn after they get some work experience. But, when minimum wage levels are set without regard to their initial productivity, young people are disproportionately unemployed &mdash; priced out of jobs.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A recent example of the harms resulting from these laws can be found in California, where the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ohio-and-louisiana-press-forwards-with-legislation-to-permit-trained-school-teachers-to-transport-firearms\/\" title=\"Ohio and Louisiana Press Forwards With Legislation to permit Trained School Teachers to transport Firearms\">state government enacted<\/a> a $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers last year. <\/p>\n<p>As Federalist Senior Contributor Christopher Jacobs <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/01\/25\/californias-disastrous-minimum-wage-hike-offers-a-cautionary-tale-to-congress\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">observed<\/a>, reports began emerging of Golden State restaurants &ldquo;furloughing workers&rdquo; months ahead of the law&rsquo;s enactment to help compensate for the wage hike. Not long after the law took effect, Jacobs similarly <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/06\/survey-98-of-california-fast-food-restaurants-raised-prices-due-to-minimum-wage-hike\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted<\/a> how a survey conducted among such restaurant owners found that &ldquo;just about all of [those] &hellip; surveyed (98 percent) said they had raised prices in response&rdquo; to the required wage increase. <\/p>\n<p>Mandating a minimum wage hike isn&rsquo;t the only economic-related issue in which Hawley comes down on the same side as Democrats. <\/p>\n<p>Amid negotiations over Republicans&rsquo; reconciliation package, the Missouri senator has been rushing to legacy media outlets like The New York Times and CNN to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/12\/opinion\/josh-hawley-dont-cut-medicaid.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">declare<\/a> his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=879gDjf_7Ds\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">full-throated opposition<\/a> to any GOP-proposed &ldquo;cuts&rdquo; to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/medicaid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Medicaid<\/a>. As noted by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/josh-hawley-raise-federal-minimum-wage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CBS News<\/a>, &ldquo;Earlier this year, he [also] teamed up with Sen. Bernie Sanders to introduce legislation to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-could-run-into-trouble-with-temporary-cap-on-credit-card-interest-rates-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Trump could run into trouble with temporary cap on ... card interest rates - Washington Examiner\">cap credit card interest rates<\/a> at 10%&rdquo; &mdash; a proposal some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/restoring-america\/faith-freedom-self-reliance\/3429715\/credit-cards-josh-hawley-interest-rate-cap-charade-will-hurt-working-americans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">analysts<\/a> say &ldquo;will disproportionately hurt working families by reducing access to financial services.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Hawley may very well be seeking to advance the best interests of his constituents when advocating for these policies. But at the end of the day, pushing for tried and failed left-wing economics under the guise of populism is not the way to do it.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-american-freedom-convoy-set-to-launch-on-march-1\/\" title=\"Exclusive: \u2018American Freedom Convoy\u2019 Set To Launch On March 1\">state content writer<\/a> for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/15-minimum-wage\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">$15 minimum wage<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/economics-2\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">economics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/josh-hawley\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Josh Hawley<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/medicaid\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Medicaid<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/minimum-wage\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">minimum wage<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/minimum-wage-laws\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">minimum wage laws<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/senate-republicans\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Senate Republicans<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/thomas-sowell\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Thomas Sowell<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/welfare-state\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">welfare state<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., introduced a bill to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, despite evidence showing such laws can harm workers<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2445432,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Josh-Hawley.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[42089,34799,54899,56894,32171],"class_list":["post-2445431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-economic-debate","tag-josh-hawley","tag-left-wing-policies","tag-policy-critique","tag-political-commentary"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Josh-Hawley.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2445431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2445431"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2445431\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2445435,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2445431\/revisions\/2445435"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2445432"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2445431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2445431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2445431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}