*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).
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, November 13, 2019.
The president's fiery comments aimed at the Fed come just a day before Chairman Jerome Powell heads to Capitol Hill to testify before the Joint Economic Committee on the state of the economy.
The sold out event marked progress for the industry, and hammered home opportunities ー and challenges ー on the rise in one of the next frontiers for cannabis legalization: the European Union.
The 'What's Your Warrior?' campaign is designed to introduce Generation Z to the diverse range of Army opportunities and build awareness among the country's youth.
Jamaal Bowman, a Justice Democrat, has called to repeal the 1994 Crime Bill, a piece of legislation backed by his opponent, 16-term Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel.
With the billionaire ex-NYC mayor looking to enter the crowded field of contenders, the NJ Senator's campaign doesn't believe Bloomberg could build a "multiracial coalition" to beat Donald Trump.
Juli Briskman was elected earlier this week as a supervisor in her home Algonkian District in Loudoun County, Virginia.
Trump said Friday that his administration will support a nationwide law raising the minimum age to purchase any vaping products from 18 to 21, a policy that has already been enacted in several states and cities.
The potential new train service is part of a long-term plan to vastly expand the types of travel – and range of ticket prices – that the state and federally funded, privately run passenger rail company provides.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, November 8, 2019.
