In the debate over the minimum wage — a debate pitting people who only think about lovely intended consequences against people who analyze the actual effects of policies — Obama and his friends keep saying that increasing the minimum wage won’t cost any workers their jobs. Supposedly, research has proven that employers are not the least bit sensitive to the cost of labor (unlike other inputs). In this Washington Examiner article, Byron York notes that the Navy concludes that the higher minimum will lead to job losses as fast food restaurants on bases will close.

When that happens, Obama and his chorus of statists will probably say, “Well, they were crappy jobs anyway. The people are better off without them.”