Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush raised some eyebrows on Wednesday when he suggested people should "work longer hours" to improve the country's economy.

During an interview for New Hampshire's The Union Leader, Bush responded to a question about his tax reform plans, and said, "My aspiration for the country. and I believe we can achieve it, is 4-percent growth as far as the eye can see. Which means we have to be a lot more productive, workforce participation has to rise from its all-time modern lows. It means that people need to work longer hours and, through their productivity, gain more income for their families. That's the only way we're going to get out of this rut that we're in."

Democrats were quick to criticize Bush's suggestion that people should work longer hours.

"Jeb Bush, throughout his entire career has only looked to benefit the wealthy and corporations," said Democratic National Committee Hispanic Media Director Pablo Manriquez, in a statement to Latin Post.

Manriquez added, "As president, Bush would do what he's always done -- look out for himself and people like him over the priorities of everyday Americans. And while he thinks you're not working hard or long enough, he also opposes raising the minimum wage. He wants to force future seniors to work longer by raising the retirement age and he wants to repeal the Affordable Care Act."

As Latino Decisions noted, Bush is against raising the minimum wage, and claimed it is an issue he will lose the Latino vote. The Latino Decisions report, by Gary Segura and Matt Barreto, noted Bush wants the private sector to determine the minimum wage. A November 2014 Latino Decisions national poll found 78 percent of Latinos stating the federal minimum wage should be increased to $10.10, including 80 percent of registered Latino Florida voters. A July 2014 poll found 67 percent of Latinos were concerned that they are not earning enough to pay their basic expenses.

"The fact is, Bush's brutal antipathy for the struggles of hardworking Americans is becoming more obvious as his campaign continues," said Manriquez.

"Ultimately, as Latinos know, we are and will continue to be among the hardest working people in the United States. Democrats will continue to fight every day so that working class Americans get paid fair wages to support their families and rise to the middle class. Like the rest of the Republican field, Jeb Bush is simply out of touch with the American worker," added Manriquez

The Union Leader interviewer did ask Bush to clarify the comment. Based on a transcript from the Bush campaign, he asked, "To keep us from taking it out of context, what you meant to say -- when you say more hours you mean full-time work?"

Bush: "Given the opportunity to work. Yeah, absolutely."

QUESTION: "Not that a full time guy or somebody working two jobs needs to be working even more time?"

BUSH: "Absolutely not. Their incomes need to grow. It's not going to grow in an environment where the costs of doing business are so extraordinarily high here. Health care costs are rising. In many places the cost of doing business is extraordinarily high and the net result of that is that business start up rates are at an all time low. Work force participation rates are low. If anyone is celebrating this anemic recovery, then they are totally out of touch. The simple fact is people are really struggling. So giving people a chance to work longer hours has got to be part of the answer. If not, you are going to see people lose hope. And that's where we are today."

Based on 2014 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), more than 16.8 million Latinos have worked more than 35 hours or more, per week, which constitutes as full time work. In a U.S. Department of Labor report titled, "The Latino Labor Force in the Recovery," Latinos are more likely to be employed in the private sector than whites and African Americans. Half of full-time Latino workers earned at least $549 per week in 2011, which was only 71 percent of that earned by white workers.

According to the Labor Department, Latinos are expected to comprise 19 percent of the country's labor force by 2020.

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