[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 12, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H2037]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    PRESCRIPTION FOR A PROSPEROUS ECONOMY: LOWER THE TAX RATE, AND 
                       ELIMINATE CLINTON ELITISTS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of May 
12, 1995, the gentleman from California [Mr. Rohrabacher] is recognized 
during morning business for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, how many of us remember what was going 
on 4 years ago? Four years ago the American people were told that we 
were in the worst recession in 50 years. Remember that? The worst 
recession in 50 years. The news media did not challenge that claim by 
candidate Clinton, but soon after the election, we found out all the 
new statistics, economic statistics, that were coming out were exactly 
the opposite. We were not in the worst recession in 50 years. In fact, 
the economy was heading up in the last half of that year, of that last 
election year of 1992.
  We are now being told, 4 years later, that things are great. The 
stock market is booming. Inflation remains low. Things are not that 
great, Mr. Speaker, The American people know that. They can sense that, 
no matter how many times the news media is trying to tell them 
otherwise.
  The growth rate actually went down dramatically from the time 
President Clinton was inaugurated until this year. Now we are told 
things are really picking up. Things are not picking up. There is an 
illusion that things are getting better, but the American people know 
better. The first item on President Clinton's agenda when he was 
inaugurated was passing the largest tax increase in American history. 
Candidate Clinton had promised a middle-class tax cut. Today, 3 years 
later, the American people understand something is wrong. Something is 
wrong. They are paying more, but they cannot put their finger on it.
  That is because every time they go to the gas pump they are paying 5 
cents more than they would otherwise. That is because many of our 
seniors, who are the hardest hit by the Clinton tax cut, know that they 
are paying more money on their Social Security, more taxes on their 
Social Security benefits. Our seniors felt that tax increase, and a lot 
of the rest of us have felt the effects of that tax increase, but a lot 
of Clinton's rich pals, President Clinton's rich pals, did not feel 
that.
  How many of us remember that some of the top contributors to 
President Clinton's campaign were tipped off by someone, no one knows 
who, that the tax increases that he would propose as President would be 
made retroactive? A few super rich contributors, like Mr. Eisner, who 
owns Disney Corporation, managed to basically do his selling and make 
his profits between the time President Clinton was elected and the time 
he was inaugurated. Apparently somebody had tipped him off that those 
tax increases would be retroactive. He saved himself a cool $100 
million, but the average American today is paying higher and higher 
taxes.
  We understand that the American people today, as compared to 1992, 
the average American family actually is earning in take-home pay, take-
home pay, over $700 less than they did in 1992. No, Mr. and Mrs. 
America, you are not experiencing some kind of delusion. I know you 
have gone to the movie and you have seen ``The American President,'' 
this multimillion dollar movie that Hollywood made to glorify the 
presidency. You have heard the news media telling you over and over and 
over again that things are getting better. But no, you are not 
suffering some delusion in thinking that something is wrong, that 
something has gone wrong with your standard of living and that you are 
not living as well.
  When the Government takes more money from the people in the form of 
taxation, it puts a clamp on economic growth and it takes decision 
making away from them, and freedom away from them, and prosperity away 
from the people. We cannot create something out of nothing. Many 
liberals believe over the years that if the Government does something, 
if the Government pays money or if the Government taxes them, this is 
coming out of thin air. The fact is Government revenue, Federal 
revenue, unless it results from higher productivity of the American 
worker, unless it results from actually more investments, unless it 
results not from higher tax rates, but from more productivity and more 
production of wealth in our society, means that the American people are 
worse off. Today every American family faces the choice of either 
having a lower standard of living or having two people in the family 
work.
  What we have found far too often is that when we examine the 
statistics, what is happening is that one member of the American family 
is working full time, and the only thing that happens is that that 
person's money is paying their Federal taxes. If we are to be a free 
society, if our people are to be prosperous and to live as they are 
supposed to, we must lower the tax rate and we must eliminate the 
Clinton elitists that would like to take more and more money out of our 
pockets.

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