*By Christian Smith*
Congressman Ro Khanna wants to inspire companies to do better by their workers.
"It's absurd that you have multi-billion dollar companies, trillion-dollar companies that aren't able to pay their workers $15," Rep. Khanna said Friday in an interview on Cheddar.
That's why the prominent House progressive, who represents California's Silicon Valley, is teaming up with ex-presidential candidate and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders to introduce legislation that would place a tax on large corporations ー money that is equivalent to the amount of federal benefits their low-income employees receive to make a livable wage.
Rep. Khanna's House bill is called the "Corporate Responsibility and Taxpayer Protection Act" and targets large companies across industries, including tech, retail, and fast food, he said.
Sanders was a little more pointed with his version, dubbed the "Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing Out Subsidies Act." That's Stop BEZOS, if you didn't notice.
Rep. Khanna said that Amazon has responded to the Sanders bill, saying the company creates safe working spaces for employees and offers competitive benefits. But the Congressman said the point of benefits is a separate matter.
"They're still not addressing the fundamental point," Khanna said.
"Why can't they just come out and say they're going to pay every employee in our company at least a $15 wage so they can have a livable wage?"
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/congressman-ro-khanna-wants-major-corporations-to-improve-worker-pay-or-pay-more-in-taxes).
The Trump administration has relaxed a regulation restricting water flow from showerheads — something that was a pet peeve of President Trump, who complained that he wanted more water to make his hair “perfect.”
One of President Donald Trump's former Atlantic City casinos will be blown up next month, and for the right amount of money, you could be the one to press the button that brings it down.
Top congressional leaders appear to be on the brink of a long-delayed COVID-19 aid package.
The Federal Reserve will keep buying government bonds until the economy makes “substantial” progress, a step intended to reassure financial markets and keep long-term borrowing rates low.
Paris city hall has been fined 90,000 euros ($109,408) for having appointed too many women to top positions in 2018, in breach of a law aimed at ensuring gender balance.
The pace is intensifying as Washington negotiators try to reach agreement on COVID-19 relief. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has summoned other top congressional leaders for a potentially critical meeting on Tuesday.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell congratulated Democrat Joe Biden on Tuesday as the president-elect. The Republican leader said the Electoral College “has spoken.”
Attorney General William Barr, one of President Donald Trump’s staunchest allies, is resigning amid lingering tension with the president over the president’s baseless claims of election fraud and the investigation into President-elect Joe Biden’s son.
Presidential electors have given Joe Biden a majority of their votes, formalizing his victory in last month’s election. California’s 55 votes put Biden over the top Monday.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers is unveiling a proposal for COVID-19 relief as Congress searches for a final agreement.
