'It's an archaic system that has never worked,' Raese said. John Raese: Abolish minimum wage

West Virginia Republican John Raese, locked in a tight race for the state's Senate seat, said Tuesday he "absolutely" supports the abolition of the minimum wage.

Raese, in an interview with ABC News, lamented the inefficacy of federally-imposed minimum wage for American workers and would support getting rid of it altogether.


"It's an archaic system that has never worked," Raese said, adding that the minimum wage "hasn't solved any problems in 50 years."

Raese's comments on the minimum wage come a few days after he caught flak for a commercial aired by the National Republican Senatorial Committee that included actors found via a casting call seeking a "hicky" look.

Gov. Joe Manchin, Raese's Democratic opponent, hammered the Republican again in a separate interview with ABC.

"I wouldn't have been upset if they would have said coal miners and truckers" in the NRSC casting call, Manchin said, adding "those are two of the most honorable professions" in West Virginia.

A new Public Policy Polling survey released Tuesday reveals Raese is now trailing Manchin by 3 percentage points with three weeks left until the November elections.

But Raese still hopes he can bank on the anti-incumbent, anti-Democrat fervor lifting Republican nominees nationwide.

"I will stand up against the president, against the administration, against any president or administration when what they're doing is wrong for West Virginia ... I can guarantee you that," Raese said.