8th District Congressman and Iraq War Veteran Fulfills his Pledge to Raise the Minimum Wage and Also Votes to Make Willow Grove a Homeland Security Hub for the Northeast

(Washington, D.C.) – Late yesterday, Pennsylvania Congressman Patrick Murphy (D-8th District) voted to raise the minimum wage and to make Willow Grove a homeland security hub for the northeast. Rep. Murphy voted yes on the first of two votes which included the first hike in the minimum wage in 10 years and a provision that allows the state to establish a regional security hub at the Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base. If the president signs the measure passed by the House and Senate late last night, he would in effect supersede the Navy’s decision not to turn the surplus land over to the Air Force and by extension, the state of Pennsylvania. The minimum wage increase, the first in a decade, raises the national minimum wage from $5.15 per hour to $7.25 per hour.

“I promised my constituents on both sides of the aisle that I’d always vote my conscience and that is what I did,” said Congressman Patrick Murphy. “I was proud to vote for a much-needed pay raise for American workers and to move one step closer toward keeping Willow Grove as a homeland security hub for our region.”

Earlier this year, Rep. Murphy voted to raise the minimum wage as one of his first votes in Congress. Yesterday’s vote puts that increase one step closer to the president’s desk and eventually the law. The measure will increase the minimum wage by $2.10 over two years -- from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour. The minimum wage increase is expected to benefit at least 13 million American workers and even more families.

The text of the Willow Grove language in the legislation Murphy supported is as follows: The Secretary of the Navy shall, notwithstanding any other provision of law, transfer to the Secretary of the Air Force, at no cost, all lands, easements, Air Installation Compatible Use Zones, and facilities at NASJRB Willow Grove designated for operation as a Joint Interagency Installation for use by the Pennsylvania National Guard and other Department of Defense components, government agencies, and associated users to perform national defense, homeland security, and emergency preparedness missions.

Prior to being elected to Congress, Patrick Murphy served as a Captain in the U.S. Army. He was deployed to Bosnia and then to Iraq. In Iraq he served with the 82nd Airborne where he was awarded the Bronze Star for his service. He is the first and only Iraq war veteran to serve in Congress.

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For Immediate Release, May 25, 2007
Contact: Adam Abrams (202) 225-4276