On the minimum wage, it's actually a very controversial issue among economists. Clearly, if you raise the minimum wage, then those workers who retain their jobs will get higher income and therefore it helps them. The concerns that some economists have raised about the minimum wage are first, is it as well targeted as it could be? That is, how much of the increase is going to the teenage children of suburban families, for example?
And secondly, does it have any employment effects? That is, do higher wages lower employment of low-wage workers?
...The minimum wage affects a very small number of workers, actually, so I don't think it would affect a great majority of people that you're concerned about.