In this moment of unprecedented crises, the Senate must respond through unprecedented action. We must put the needs of working families ahead of the needs of the wealthy and powerful. That is what this reconciliation bill is all about.

While Walmart refuses to raise its $11 minimum wage, Alice Walton had no problem purchasing a $500 million private art collection, buying a $25 million 2-floor Park Avenue condo with 52 windows and acquiring a $22 million 4,400-acre Texas ranch. Something is very wrong here.

I'm on the Senate floor NOW talking about why it's time to eliminate the tipped minimum wage of $2.13 an hour.

70 percent of tipped workers are women. They suffer from the highest rates of sexual harassment of workers in any industry. The time is NOW to end the tipped minimum wage of $2.13 an hour.

It is time to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. The working class is demanding it.

This morning, there will be a vote on the floor of the U.S. Senate to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. As I’ve said for years, it is time to end starvation wages in this country.

This package, among many other things, increases direct payments by $1400, extends unemployment benefits, reduces child poverty by half, ensures we are vaccinating as many people as possible, and puts us on a path to safely reopen schools.

56 years after Bloody Sunday, we remember those who put everything on the line for democracy, equality and freedom. We must honor their legacy by passing legislation to protect and expand voting rights for generations to come.