[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 49 (Wednesday, April 17, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3418-S3419]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 EXTREMISM: THE MANTRA OF THE MINORITY

  Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, if there is 1 day that dramatically 
highlights the growing anxieties of middle-class Americans, it is April 
15. During this tax week of 1996, I want to share some thoughts on 
taxes, Congress, and a certain word that has crept into a place of 
prominence here on Capitol Hill.
  Since the opening days of the 104th Congress, my colleagues on the 
other side of the aisle have come to the floor repeatedly to talk of 
``extremism'' and ``extremists.''
  These are not words to be tossed around lightly, and yet more than 
100 times over the past 16 months, those are the very words they have 
used to describe the work of this Congress. ``Extremist'' has become 
the mantra of the minority, repeated over and over when all the 
arguments have been exhausted and refuted, and name calling is all that 
remains.
  The Contract With America ``is simply the wish list of the extreme 
faction of one political party,'' says one.
  ``The sweeping and extremist approach in this bill poses a grave 
threat to all Americans, especially children,'' says another.
  And finally, ``If moderation does not prevail, this level of 
extremism will ultimately take our country backward, not forward, and 
the damage will be felt not by us, but by generations to come.''
  Of course, the rhetoric has not been confined to this Chamber alone, 
or to the other body. The Clinton administration, and particularly the 
President and Vice President, have repeatedly engaged in it as well, as 
they recite from the pages of this well-worn script. In just seven news 
conferences and speeches last year, Vice President Gore used some 
version of the word ``extremist'' 22 times in describing our efforts to 
reform the way Government undertakes the people's business.
  ``Extremist groups.''
  ``Extremist measures.''
  ``Extremist factions.''
  ``The extremist, radical members of their caucus.''
  ``An extremist set of priorities.''
  ``An extremist agenda.''
  You would think from all the dramatics that something truly horrible 
is going here. So, Mr. President, what's happening that has my Democrat 
colleagues running so scared? What is Congress doing that is so 
radical, so dangerous, so wrong, so extreme?
  Here are the shocking highlights:
  We accomplished what a quarter century of Congresses couldn't when we 
balanced the Federal budget. This Congress is not willing to let our 
children and grandchildren collapse under a load of debt that we have 
created.
  We have taken responsible steps to control spending, reining in the 
Federal Government and reducing its role as the dominating force in 
American life.
  Working families would keep billions of their own money under the tax 
plan passed by Congress. We offered families a $500 tax credit for each 
child, eliminated the marriage penalty that discriminated against 
married couples, and helped bring and keep families together through 
adoption and elderly care tax credits.

  We are also not willing to sit by and let Medicare dissolve into 
bankruptcy. Under legislation passed by this Congress, seniors would be 
assured that Medicare--for some, their only link to health care 
insurance--would be rescued from its impending insolvency.
  Our plan to reform the welfare system encourages recipients to seek a 
life beyond their monthly welfare checks, while it protects the 
American taxpayers from the abuses of the past.
  Mr. President, have my colleagues across the aisle become so 
insulated from the public and isolated from reality that they have 
forgotten what qualifies as extreme out in the real world? Our work on 
behalf of the Nation's families, taxpayers, senior citizens, children, 
and job providers could hardly be considered extreme. Far from it--what 
we have accomplished is exactly what the American people sent us here 
to carry out.
  So how do you think it makes them feel to see their dreams for the 
Nation dismissed on the Senate floor as the notions of extremists?
  If you really want to talk about extremism, there is a good reason 
why so many American families have April 15 circled on that calendar 
taped to the refrigerator door. They have experienced extremism in 
their Government right where it hurts the most--the family wallet--and 
they are reminded of that fact every year when tax day rolls around.
  Under the current administration, Americans are paying more in 
Federal taxes this year than they have ever paid before.
  President Clinton started the trend with his recordbreaking $241 
billion tax hike in 1993, which raised taxes on every member of the 
middle class. Add to that the new taxes imposed by the President in his 
latest budget, and Americans will be paying a half trillion more in 
taxes than we did before President Clinton took office. That is an 
additional $758 every year, for the next 10 years, for every taxpayer 
in this country.
  The American people say that is extreme.
  The tax load has become such a burden that Tax Freedom Day--the day 
we are no longer working just to pay our taxes and can begin keeping 
that money for ourselves--will not arrive this year until May 7. That 
is the latest ever. It means working Americans have been on the job 
from January 1 through today, and have not been allowed to keep even a 
dime of their own money. That will not happen for another 20 days.
  And by the way, families in my home State of Minnesota will have to 
wait even longer. Because State taxes in Minnesota are higher than the 
national average, my constituents are forced to hold out an additional 
8 days until their Tax Freedom Day arrives.
  And the calculations for Tax Freedom Day do not include the 
additional days we are forced to work to cover the heavy costs of 
Washington's unnecessary and burdensome regulations as well. If it did, 
we would not be marking our freedom until the first week of July. That 
is a cruel joke, considering that is when we are also celebrating 
Independence Day.
  The American people say that is extreme.

[[Page S3419]]

  When President Clinton was elected in 1992, Federal taxes on a 
median-income American family--Federal taxes on a median-income 
American family--totaled $12,770. By last year, that same family was 
paying a total of $14,813 in taxes--over $2,000 a year more per median 
family since 1992. And now 26.5 percent of every family's income goes 
directly to Washington.
  That is not exactly what the American people had in mind. In a survey 
conducted last year, they were asked what percentage of their income 
should reasonably go to paying taxes. This was for all levels of 
government, including social security taxes, sales taxes, excise taxes, 
and property taxes. Across the board, regardless of income group, age, 
education, gender, race, or political affiliation, the answer was the 
same: most people said a maximum tax burden of 25 percent would be 
fair.
  No wonder they are feeling squeezed today. Far from the 25 percent 
tax rate they think is reasonable, the typical American family faced a 
total tax burden--and that includes Federal, State, and local taxes--of 
38.2 percent of all their income in 1995. That is more money going to 
Washington than families spend for food, clothing, shelter, and 
transportation combined.
  The American people say that is extreme, too.
  I know that is what Minnesotans are saying. I held a series of town 
meetings back home last week, in a part of the State where life can be 
tough and money doesn't come easy. It is home to hard-working people 
who sometimes hold down two jobs, and spend as many as 7 days a week on 
the job, struggling to stay afloat. They ask nothing more of their 
Government than the opportunity and freedom to make something of their 
lives. But high taxes continue to block the way.
  We talked about taxes at every stop over the recess, and how 40 years 
of Washington's economic extremism have trapped working families short 
of their dreams.
  They are frustrated. They do not see where their tax dollars are 
going, or how those dollars are directly improving their lives and 
their communities. And given that, they do not understand how Congress 
can keep coming after them for more.
  During one of our stops, a college student pulled me aside after my 
town meeting in Duluth. He said, ``It seems like the federal government 
is reaching deeper and deeper into our pockets, but in my case, I don't 
have any more to give.'' He went on to say, I don't qualify for student 
aid, so I'm working for my tuition and rent. I'm paying all these 
taxes, but none of it comes back to benefit me. So please--cut my taxes 
and let me keep my own money.''
  People do not understand what is happening in Washington. The crowds 
at my town meetings wanted to know why the President campaigned on a 
promise to balance the budget and cut their taxes, but then vetoed the 
balanced budget and tax relief bill passed by this Congress, and, by 
the way, passed the largest tax increase on its own.
  I had to admit that I did not understand either. ``Chalk it up to 
election-year politics,'' I said.
  Would the President come around and sign your bill this year, they 
wondered?
  I had to say, ``It doesn't look good.'' ``Not this year. Not this 
President.'' And the people just shook their heads.
  Listen to the people, Mr. President--they will tell you just what 
they told me. Cutting taxes for working families is not extreme. 
Preserving Medicare is not extreme. Giving people opportunities to pull 
themselves out of poverty is not extreme.
  If anything is extreme about our government, it is the past practices 
of a Congress and President willing to steal from tomorrow's kids to 
finance another Federal handout or social program or pork project 
today. That is what the people sent us here to change.
  Mr. President, there are despicable people in this world--assassins, 
bombers, terrorists--who are filled with such rage and contempt that 
they deserve to be branded as ``extremists.''
  But in America, a man or woman who works themselves to the bone, who 
struggles to put food on the table and keep a sturdy roof over their 
family's heads, who just wants to sign their tax return knowing that 
this government does not take their tax dollars for granted anymore--is 
not an extremist.
  Yet, Mr. President, any time my colleagues dismiss the people's 
taxpayers' agenda as extreme, they pin that label on every one of those 
Americans.
  During tax week, 1996, my colleagues would do well to acknowledge the 
debt of gratitude we owe the American taxpayers. After all, their 
sacrifices have built this massive Federal Government. I leave you with 
this question--during tax week, 1996, when Washington's burden has 
become too much and the people are begging for our help, what is this 
Government willing to sacrifice in return?
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, might I inquire, are we in morning 
business?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate is in morning business.

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