The New York Times reports on the presidential push for a higher federal minimum wage. While this Congress is unlikely to approve it, the White House claims credit for the emergence of state and local actions to raise the minimum.

In the last 14 months, since Mr. Obama first called for the wage increase in his 2013 State of the Union address, seven states and the District of Columbia have raised their own minimum wages, and 34 states have begun legislative debates on the matter. Activists in an additional eight states are pursuing ballot referendums this year to demand an increase in wages for their lowest-paid workers.

The coordination is impressive.

The White House is also running a weekly strategy session with Capitol Hill lawmakers, top White House political advisers and outside groups like labor unions who are eager to see a higher minimum wage.

Business resistance is stepping up.

The National Retail Federation announced on Tuesday that it will treat votes in Congress for a minimum-wage increase as a negative factor in its rankings of business-friendly lawmakers. David French, the group’s top lobbyist, said Mr. Obama was pushing an issue that would not help the economy.

“There’s so much collateral damage you can do to job creation by setting a minimum wage,” Mr. French said. “The higher you set that minimum wage, the more collateral damage you do. Politics is being played here.”

No doubt.

Meanwhile, Seattle clings to the most, ahem, ambitious goal of a $15 wage. Seattle Times editorial writer Jonathan Martin notes the uncharted territory.

…an across-the-board increase from the already-top-in-the-nation state wage of $9.32 to $15 is, well, “significantly beyond existing local, state or federal mandates.” And the experience of the nine other cities and counties with higher minimum wages shows they included a raft of trade-offs and concessions.

He goes into more detail in his blog post (linked above) and his column.

Meanwhile, Publicola reports on a proposal from a newly-formed group, Forward Seattle, calling for a $12.50 wage, the Main Street Alliance’s decision to wait a bit before taking an official position, and rumors that the Seattle Mayor’s minimum wage committee seems to be struggling.

Sometimes it feels like this debate has gone on forever. And we’re eight months away from Election Day.