[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 64 (Thursday, April 6, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E811]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


              CONTRACT WITH AMERICA TAX RELIEF ACT OF 1995

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                               speech of

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                        of district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 5, 1995

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1215) to 
     amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to strengthen the 
     American family and create jobs:

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Chairman, I urge defeat of this rule. Republicans 
have boasted that they have reformed the process. It is anti-reform to 
bypass a committee of jurisdiction. It is worse than that when you do 
so in order to take people's retirement in order to fund a tax cut.
  The American public regards its retirement as sacred, and this House 
has treated Social Security as sacred. Well, this is these folks' 
Social Security. You have used the contract time and time again as a 
metaphor. This is the Federal workers' contract. You asked them and 
forced them to choose between two systems in 1986. They chose. It is 
irrevocable for them, but you want to change the rules for yourselves 
in a tax cut. That is wrong.
  It is a tax cut nobody wants except Republicans in this body. How 
many times, how many ways do Americans have to say it? Deficit 
reduction, deficit reduction. It is bad enough to give a tax break to 
the rich; it is shameful to do it by taking money from the retirements 
of middle-income workers.




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