Bush’s Veto of Minimum Wage

Because of a 30-cent difference with the Democrats, the President has vetoed the minimum wage bill.

I am reminded of the Broadway musical “Pajama Game” (circa 1950) in which the union demands “7 1/2 cents.” One of the songs points out that “Seven and a half cents doesn’t buy a helluva lot.” Allowing for inflation since, neither will 30 cents in 1989.

Recently The Times carried a list of the 100 top paid executives in California. The average annual compensation was $2.3 million.

During the 1980s, executive compensation has skyrocketed while the minimum wage has not budged.

The supply-side economists maintain that “a rising tide lifts all boats.” We must have been experiencing an unusual tide because the luxury yachts shot up and the rowboats remain stuck in the mud.

President Bush’s rationale is that the additional 30 cents will stifle job creation. If true, it follows that an increase in top executive compensation is bad news for the outlook for middle to upper-middle level management jobs. Perhaps those people should reassess their political viewpoints.

A classmate of mine, until recently CEO of one of the 50 largest industrial corporations in America, said that the far less democratic distribution of income in the United States vis-a-vis Japan hurts our morale in competition with our Far East competitor.

FLOYD A. OLIVER

Los Angeles