A ballot initiative in Portland Maine to increase the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour failed last Tuesday. What makes this defeat so instructive is that Portland IS the Democrat Mecca of Maine. Forty-seven percent are registered Democrat. Six percent of its voters are members of the Green Party. In the last election for governor 74% of ballots were marked for the Democrat challenger to Republican Paul LePage. Portland is blue.
But not blue enough to rubber stamp a minimum wage hike to $15.00 and hour.
Portland will get there eventually, job loss and business flight will follow as it must, but not this year.
