Fossella vs. low income constituents

Ah the hypocrisy of Vito Fossella.

Since 1999 Rep. Vito Fossella has done everything he can to prevent the same or similar legislation to the Mimimum Wage bill he voted for yesterday, from making it to the floor in Congress for a vote. He refused to cosponsor any of that legislation, even though there was often bipartisan support. He refused to sign a discharge petition which would have required it be voted on. Keep that in mind when you re-read some poverty statistics about Staten Island we covered this past year;

"...the poverty level in Staten Island has increased to 10.1% in 2003. Staten Island has a projected population of 464,573 in 2005, equating to about 46,000 people living below the poverty line." July 13, 2006

"The 2000 Census shows that in Staten Island family household income was struggling to make ends meet. 15.2% of the borough made less than $25,000..."

5.3% made less than $10,000
3.3% made $10,000 to $14,999
6.6% made $15,000 to $24,999

What has Rep. Vito Fossella done about this? [via his Issues page]
* He helped eliminate the Estate Tax which covers fewer than 2% of estates. In 2006, the tax is applicable to estates valued over $2,000,000.
* He helped provide tax credits for families who can afford to send their children to private schools.
* He defeated the proposal to eliminate mortgage deductions on taxes.
* Protected residents from the Alternative Minimum Tax which he notes effects families with incomes well over $50,000. August 14, 2006

That $10,000/year threshold is what a minimum wage worker would have earned working 40 hrs a week without vacation/holiday time. Consider the other 9.9% make too much money to even be effected by a minimum wage increase and they top out at $24,999 for a household per year. Should the Senate pass a similar bill and the President not veto it, in 26 months when the minimum wage rises to $7.25/hr a minimum wage worker will only be then making $15,000/yr. Thanks Rep. Fossella for all of your hard work on this issue!