[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 47 (Monday, April 15, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H3241]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  SUPPORT THE TAX LIMITATION AMENDMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California [Mr. Cox] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. COX of California. Mr. Speaker, in Bill Clinton's first term, he 
and the liberals who then controlled the Congress passed and signed 
into law the largest tax increase in American history. Since that time, 
we have still had no relief. It is April 15 today, and many people feel 
this pain.
  The President, Bill Clinton, vetoed the middle class tax cut passed 
by the new Congress, and as a result, even though last year the gross 
domestic product, the measure of our economy, grew by only 2 percent, 
individual income taxes collected by the Federal Government grew 8.5 
percent. Taxes are growing and growing inexorably, year in and year 
out. Today, the average American has to spend 3 hours out of an 8-hour 
day working just to pay taxes.
  Ask yourself this question: How much do you spend in total on your 
home mortgage, on your rent, on your electricity, on your telephone? 
How much do you spend on your suits and your dresses and your other 
clothes? How much do you spend on restaurants and groceries?
  Over the whole year, add all of those things up, and if you are like 
the average American, whether you are rich or not, even if you are just 
a working American, you pay more in taxes than you pay on all of these 
things, food, clothing and shelter, combined; 35 percent more in taxes.
  It has not always been this way. Our taxes have been growing at an 
amazing rate just within our lifetimes. Many people here are veterans 
of World War II. If you are not a veteran of World War II, almost 
certainly your father is. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, only one out 
of every nine Americans even had to file an income tax return. That is 
the America our parents knew.
  I am 43 years old. When I was a kid growing up in the Midwest, the 
average American family like mine paid income tax at a rate of 3 
percent. Today, April 15, 1996, most of our constituents can only pine 
for such days as their own rate of tax has grown more than 1,000 
percent.
  While the tax burden on ordinary Americans has been growing and 
growing over the last 40 years of liberal control of the Congress, so, 
too, has runaway deficit spending. All these higher taxes have not 
balanced the budget. That is for sure. They have only promised that we 
will have more spending. They have provided an excuse to spend still 
more.
  In fact, according to the Congressional Joint Economic Committee, 
throughout the postwar period every dollar in higher taxes has provided 
an excuse for $1.59 in higher spending. In other words, the higher the 
taxes, the higher the spending.
  To rein in higher spending, this House has given two-thirds approval 
to a constitutional amendment to balance the budget. But if we are 
going to amend the Constitution to require a balanced budget and the 
supermajority vote to break that budget, then we must also take care 
that this, the balanced budget amendment, does not provide a new 
excuse, a constitutional justification, to raise taxes.
  Colleagues, our taxes are too high. Spending is too high. Those who 
contend otherwise or who say that merely greater institutional will is 
necessary stand athwart 40 years of liberal Congressional history.
  For once in 40 years, liberals do not control this body. For once, we 
have the chance to add a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. 
And for once we have a chance to add a tax limitation amendment to the 
Constitution at the same time.
  For once, let us do the right thing. Let us do the right thing for 
our country, for our children, and for our grandchildren, and vote 
``aye'' on the tax limitation amendment later this evening.

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