Minimum wage hike is wrong tool to help low-income Oklahomans | Opinion March 21, 2026, 6:45 a.m. CT In a panel discussion at Rose State College last year, I explained that increasing the minimum wage was akin to using a sledgehammer to perform open heart surgery — it just doesn’t make a lot of sense. This is because, as I have previously explained, there are very few workers who earn as little as the federal minimum wage.