This week, Sirota and Tom Frank discuss the campaign for a higher minimum wage. Joe Biden campaigned on a promise to enact a $15 minimum wage and as recently as six weeks ago, the White House and top Democrats were signaling that they were determined to make sure it was included in must-pass COVID relief legislation that needed only 50 votes to pass through the reconciliation process. Conservative Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin signaled he would support at least an $11 minimum wage. And yet, the compromise between a $15 minimum wage proposal and an $11 minimum wage proposal ended up being no minimum wage increase at all. How did that happen?

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