Sunday Political Talk Show interviews during 2013-2015: on Jobs

Evan McMullin: Opposes raising federal minimum wage

A: No

Darrell Castle: Let private business decide pay equity & family leave

Darrell Castle's answer: No, the government should never determine what a private business should pay employees

Gary Johnson's and Donald Trump's answer: No, there are too many other variables such as education, experience, and tenure that determine a fair salary

Q: Should welfare recipients be tested for drugs?

Darrell Castle has not answered this question yet.

Gary Johnson's answer: No

Q: Should businesses be required to provide paid leave for full-time employees during the birth of a child or sick family member?

Darrell Castle's and Gary Johnson's answer: No, private businesses should decide the amount of competitive incentives they offer to employees instead of a government mandate

Donald Trump's answer: Yes

Lincoln Chafee: Minimum wage of $10.10/hr.; $15 would hurt small business

Martin O`Malley: Supports a $15/hour minimum wage

Lawrence Lessig: America needs a minimum wage that is a living wage

Chris Christie: I fought greedy unions and irresponsible spending in N.J.

But the unions continue to want more and more and more. And in a Democratic state like New Jersey, it's tough to get them to push even further. But think about this. What the last credit report said was if the pension problem were fixed, New Jersey would be in good fiscal condition. And that's because we cut spending $2.5 billion from 16, lower than where it was in fiscal year '08.

So this is not about not having enough revenue. The government was too big. We've made it smaller. And if the pension system continues to get better, we'll be fine.

John Kasich: Don't raise minimum wage willy-nilly, & do it at state level

KASICH: No, people were asking me about minimum wage and I said it's very important that we don't raise the minimum wage willy-nilly and we end up throwing out of work the most unskilled workers. I also said that if you're going to have a raising the minimum wage, it ought to be something that gets calculated between employers and labor. And I fundamentally believe it ought to be done at the state level.

Donald Trump: Don't raise minimum wage, but create more opportunities

TRUMP: I want to keep the minimum wage pretty much where it is right now. Because of the fact that we have a country that is now competing more than ever before because of airplanes, and transportation, and the internet. If we raise it we're not going to be able to compete with the rest of the world. What I do want to do is bring in jobs so much so that people don't have to live on minimum wage. But we are going to have to compete with the rest of the world.

Donald Trump: Take jobs back from foreign countries to lower unemployment

We have to take back jobs from Japan, and Vietnam, and Mexico, and virtually everybody that's taking our jobs and ruining our manufacturing base. And we have to put people to work. Because the real unemployment number is probably 21%. People give up looking for jobs. And they no longer become a statistic. And it's very unfair. So we have to put our country back to work. We have to get great jobs for people and good paying jobs for people. And we're going to be just fine.

Donald Trump: Real unemployment rate is 20%; don't believe 5.6%

Our labor participation rate was the worst since 1978. But think of it, GDP below zero, horrible labor participation rate. Our real unemployment is anywhere from 18% to 20%. Don't believe the 5.6%. The real number is anywhere from 18% to maybe even 21%, and nobody talks about it, because it's a statistic that's full of nonsense.

Jeb Bush: State minimum wages ok, but not at federal level

With Los Angeles recently raising its minimum wage to $15 and other cities following suit, the issue is a hot topic. The current $7.25 federal minimum wage has not increased since 2009. Conservatives usually argue that raising the minimum wage will cut jobs because businesses will hire fewer people if they have to pay them more. Numerous Department of Labor studies have shown this isn't true.

Bush acknowledges that there is a growing income gap in the U.S., but thinks that the federal minimum wage won't close the gap, saying that he thinks minimum wage furthers the issue. He continued: "But the federal government doing this will make it harder and harder for the first rung of the ladder to be reached, particularly for young people, particularly for people that have less education."

Carly Fiorina: Layoffs in recession ensure company's overall health

FIORINA: I think you're reading the Democratic talking points because it was not all American jobs. But of course, laying people off is the last resort. It's a terrible thing to have to do. But when you are managing through the worst technology recession in 25 years, sometimes there are tough calls that need to be made for the overall health of the enterprise. And in the end, we took a company that was really struggling and turned it into an exceedingly successful company where overall jobs grew.

Scott Walker: Wisconsin is open for business, via right-to-work law

The passage of right to work marked a shift in Walker's position. The governor said repeatedly during the intense battle over Act 10--his 2011 law that repealed most collective bargaining for public workers--that he would not let legislation affecting private-sector unions reach his desk.

Walker signed the bill at a Milwaukee area factory, saying it represented "one more big tool" for attracting businesses and investment to the state. "This sends a powerful message across the country and across the world," Walker said. "'Wisconsin is Open For Business' now is more than just a slogan. It's a way of doing business."

John Kasich: Limit collective-bargaining rights for public employees

But then things took a turn for the weird. The pugnacious Kasich conceded defeat. Graciously. On election night, he issued an official statement noting that "the people of Ohio have spoken, and I respect their decision." And then, he let the issue go. For some Kasich-watchers, this was when the governor began to moderate.

John Kasich: 2011: Public employee union reforms overturned by voters

Chris Christie: Don't raise minimum wage; create better-paying jobs instead

(VIDEO CLIP) CHRISTIE: I'm tired of hearing about minimum wage. I don't think there's a mother or father sitting around a kitchen table tonight in America who are saying, "You know, honey, if our son or daughter could just make a higher minimum wage, my God, all our dreams would be realized."

Q: For people who are making $7.25 an hour, the minimum wage now, they say getting increase of $10 an hour would make a big difference in their lives and that you were being cavalier about it?

CHRISTIE: I'm saying it exactly as I see it. What we need to do in this country is not have debate over a higher minimum wage. We have to have a debate over creating better-paying middle class jobs in the country. If that somehow doesn't comport with what people in the political elite want, well, I'm sorry.

Joe Biden: Labor unions have built the middle class and built America

During his impassioned address, Biden credited labor unions for building the middle class, and thus "building the United States as we know it. If the middle class is doing fine, everybody does fine," he said. "The wealthy get very wealthy, and the poor have a way up."

Rick Santorum: Raising the minimum wage a little is ok, if phased in slowly

SANTORUM: I'm not in favor of President Obama's increase. When I was in the Senate and when I was in the House, I did vote for minimum wage increases that were incremental, that were not inflationary, that did not cost jobs. If you look at the CBO report, half-a-million people would lose their job as a result of the Obama minimum wage increase. I'm talking more in the range of a dollar, phasing that in. I think that will create a minimum wage. Only about 2% of workers are covered by the minimum wage. Historically, it's between 5% and 7%.

Q: Some in the GOP think there shouldn't be a minimum wage at all. Does this add to Republicans' problems with working people?

SANTORUM: I think it does. I think you don't see too many Republicans arguing against a minimum wage. I know a few have. But I don't think too many do. if you're going to have a minimum wage, we just need to be reasonable about it and offer an alternative.

Rick Perry: Focus on maximizing wages, not the minimum wage

A: Are the politics shifting in your party on that?

PERRY: Well, we focus on the maximum wage rather than the minimum wage. 95% of all the jobs that are created in my home state were above the minimum wage. So the idea that you should be focused on the minimum wage when in fact you ought to be focused on policies that create this environment where jobs can be created. You know, this discussion about minimum wage, when there are no jobs available. Most of us didn't start in the corner office, I mean, you worked your way up. I think it's an easy political line to pitch out to say, "I'm for raising the minimum wage," when we're looking past that in Texas from the standpoint of how do we create the maximum wage available? How do we put more people into the workforce? And that's where the focus should be.

Rob Portman: Opposed unemployment extension as unpaid-for, & needs reform

PORTMAN: I'm one of six Republicans who voted to allow this debate to go forward, I think we should. Unfortunately, Democrats did not work with us, wouldn't negotiate with us on how to pay for it. We've got a 35-year low in terms of the number of people working, the labor-participation rate. We also have record numbers of people long-term unemployed. And the Democratic answer to that is, "Let's add more to the 26 weeks of unemployment insurance to emergency benefits, and let's do nothing to reform the program. Let's do nothing to give people the skills they need to access the jobs that are out there." All the Republicans were saying, including me, was, "Look, yes, let's extend unemployment insurance, I'm okay with that. But let's pay for it. Last thing we want to do is add to the deficit. But second, let's reform this program." I have a specific proposal to do that.

Ajamu Baraka: Jobs agenda is meaningless in context of globalization

Obama and the Democrats understand and accept that the contemporary logic of global neoliberalism means that the U.S. economy is being restructured and that millions of workers are being shifted into low-wage service sector jobs, for those lucky enough to be employed. Low wages, unequal regional economic development, extreme income inequality, disproportionately high unemployment rates for African Americans, are all a structurally determined consequence of neoliberal social policies, and liberals understand this.

Ted Cruz: Lowest labor force participation in over three decades

CRUZ: Well, what I put out are the questions that I'm hearing from Texans all over the state. I spend a lot of time traveling the state of Texas listening to Texans. And the questions they raise--over and over again, they say, why are jobs and economic growth so dismal? We've got the lowest labor force participation in over three decades, since 1978. President Obama [should] address the fact that his economic policies are not working and that they're exacerbating income equality. They're hurting the people who are struggling the most.

Q: Well, of course, what he would say is that he is creating more jobs, that unemployment is going down and on and on. [Is this like when you] tried to shut down the government in demand for some action by the president?

CRUZ: President Obama dug in and said he wouldn't compromise. The senate Republicans were invited up to the White House and [Obama] said "I invited you here to tell you I will not negotiate."

Marco Rubio: Ok to extend unemployment if it's paid for

RUBIO: There is a general consensus that these programs need to be extended, but they need to be paid for. And in addition to that, maybe not as part of this effort right away, but in the long term we need to figure out way to reform those programs so that we get more people back to work.

Martin O`Malley: Extend unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless

O'MALLEY: The most it's been in since the depths of the recession.

Q: Republicans are saying, after 6 years, this is not emergency aid, this is something you have to factor in and pay for in the budget. What's wrong with that logic?

O'MALLEY: Well, a lot of the ideologues that now steer the Republican Party always seem to find money for continued tax cuts for the wealthiest 1% of Americans. But when it comes to those moms and dads that are still looking for work after a huge structural recession, they start squawking about fiscal responsibility. The way you make an economy grow is from consumer demand. And every economist will tell you that if workers have less money, they will spend less and your consumer demand will go down and your economy will not grow. So if only from an economic growth standpoint, we should be extending unemployment benefits for those that are still out there searching for work.

Martin O`Malley: Raise minimum wage to $10 per hour

O'MALLEY: Well, it's interesting, if you look at the minimum wage since 1968, and if it had merely kept pace with inflation, it would be a little above $10 an hour. If it had kept pace with productivity, it would be $20 an hour. And if it had kept pace with the earnings of the top 1 percent of Americans, it would be $28 an hour.

Q: So which one do you like?

O'MALLEY: I think we're zeroing in on around a $10 an hour minimum wage in Maryland, where, over the last five years, our people have achieved the distinction of attaining the highest median income of any state in the nation, the best public schools of any state in the nation. And we went four years in a row without a penny's increase to college tuition, because we believe in expanding opportunity to grow our middle class, to drive consumer demand. And that's why we're coming out of this recession better than other states.

Rand Paul: Unemployment insurance ok if fully paid for & short-term

PAUL: Well, I think what's really cruel is to have an economy that doesn't have jobs in it. So we have to talk about what policy creates jobs. With regard to unemployment insurance, I'm not opposed to unemployment insurance, I am opposed to having it without paying for it. I think it's wrong to borrow money from China or simply to print up money for it. But I'm not against having unemployment insurance. I do think, though, that the longer you have it, that it provides some disincentive to work, and that there are many studies that indicate this.

Q: But if this extension is paid for, you can support it

PAUL: Well, what I have always said is that it needs to be paid for, but we also need to do something for long-term unemployed people, and that is, we need to create something new that creates jobs.

Scott Walker: Link unemployment benefits to job search every week

WALKER: Any discussion about this should be focused on what sort of reforms are we going to put in place [for] people looking for work. Well, the federal government doesn't require a lot. We just made a change last year so that people had to look five times or more a week for work without our requirement change. They could go as little as two times a week. If I was out of work, I'd be looking more than twice a week for a job. I'd be looking for every day except maybe today. I take Sunday off to go to church and pray that I could find a job on Monday, but I think there need to be reforms in that system.

Scott Walker: Don't raise minimum wage; train for higher-wage jobs

WALKER: You know, again, I look at that. Years ago, I worked at McDonald's when I was a kid. Actually, Paul Ryan worked down the road from me in Janesville. I worked in a small town called Delavan. Those were great jobs to start out with. My great fear is for young people like Paul and I were back then and my kids a few years ago when they worked those sorts of jobs, they'd be without work. We have a high unemployment rate amongst young people. If we are to raise that artificially, we'd take that away. Instead, what we need to focus on is helping people find the skills they need to fill much better paying jobs, those family-supporting career-type jobs. Artificially raising the minimum wage whether it's at the state or the federal level is not going to do that. Creating an environment where employers create jobs will do just that.

Paul Ryan: No more unemployment extension after 13th time since 2008

RYAN: This package has "pay-fors," meaning spending cuts to pay for [each spending item]. When they, at the 11th hour, asked for this unemployment extension, they offered nothing to pay for it, which would have blown a hole in our deficits. Also, a 13th extension of this emergency unemployment extension from the 2008 crisis, we have a lot of evidence showing that it will prolong unemployment. Our focus is getting people back to work. We want jobs. And we want pro-growth policies that help create jobs so we don't have people going on unemployment in the first place. One of the things we think this accomplishments by providing some certainty, by preventing the government shutdowns, is it can get the economy growing again. So, our focus is on job creation, not a 13th extension of an emergency benefit that was started in 2008.

Rand Paul: Extending unemployment benefits does disservice to workers

PAUL: I do support unemployment benefits for the 26 weeks that they're paid for. If you extend it beyond that, you do a disservice to these workers. There was a study that came out a few months ago, and it said, if you have a worker that's been unemployed for 4 weeks and on unemployment insurance and one that's on 99 weeks, which would you hire? Every employer, nearly 100%, said they will always hire the person who's been out of work 4 weeks. When you allow people to be on unemployment insurance for 99 weeks, you're causing them to become part of this perpetual unemployed group in our economy. And while it seems good, it actually does a disservice to the people you're trying to help. You know, I don't doubt the president's motives. But black unemployment in America is double white unemployment. And it hasn't budged under this president.

Rand Paul: National Right-to-Work Act: no forced unionization

Indiana has joined the growing list of right to work (RTW) states, followed by heavily-unionized Michigan. That means that forced unionism is still legal in 26 states, but that number is dwindling.

RTW laws are still government intervention into what used to be private matters between employers and employees, but they lift the most onerous parts of labor union agreements which demand either the complete exclusion of non-union workers from being employed by a union shop or requiring any non-union workers to support the union with their dues anyway.

In his announcement, Paul stated: "Every American worker deserves the right to freedom of association--and I am concerned that the 26 states that allow forced union membership and dues infringes on these workers' rights."