Sen. Ruben Gallego rolls out an economic agenda as he weighs a 2028 White House bid

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who is eyeing a possible presidential bid in 2028, rolled out a new, national economic plan Wednesday that calls for boosting the minimum wage to $20 per hour and a New Deal-style public service jobs program funded by taxes on artificial intelligence companies and unpopular data centers.

In an interview with NBC News, Gallego said middle-class and working-class Americans are under assault due to rapidly advancing artificial intelligence and automation, as well as an economic system that has not sided with nor supported workers for a generation.

“There’s a lot of changes that are coming because of AI that we’re not prepared for. There’s been a lot of bad things that have been happening for the middle class for the last 40 years that we have not really changed, either. And that’s why I think you have this real anxiety out there that working America feels,” Gallego said in an interview Tuesday.

“I always felt like, you know, if I put 40 hours’ worth of honest work together, I would have enough to support my family, and then feel comfortable enough to go to a movie,” he continued. “That’s not happening anymore, and so…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business