[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 90 (Tuesday, June 24, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H4224-H4225]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TAX CUTS SHOULD GO TO MIDDLE CLASS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 21, 1997, the gentlewoman from Michigan [Ms. Stabenow] is 
recognized during morning hour debates for 3 minutes.
  Ms. STABENOW. Mr. Speaker, I rise also to strongly support the 
middle-class working families of my district in Michigan getting a tax 
cut at the end of this week. When all is said and done and we have 
debated fully the question of who should receive tax relief this week, 
my vote will be with the middle-class working families in my district.
  Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased as a new Member from Michigan to have 
been a part of this historic balanced budget agreement, and in that 
agreement we carved out a net $85 billion to be given in tax relief. 
The question now before us is where that goes. While we came together 
in a bipartisan way on the issue of balancing the budget, we now see 
great philosophical differences as to where to put tax relief. This is 
where the big split in terms of vision between the parties comes.
  The Republicans voted a bill out of committee that targets the 
relief, the majority of the relief, to those receiving more than 
$250,000 a year with the outdated notion that, if you give to the 
wealthy, it will trickle down to all of us. That happened in the 1980's 
and did not work.

  The policies of the 1990's under President Clinton have been to focus 
dollars directly into the pockets of middle-class workers and those who 
are working hard to get into the middle class, and I truly believe that 
is how we provide economic stimulus in the country and that is how we 
make sure that those who need tax relief receive it.
  Mr. Speaker, the people in my district would like some tax relief 
help in sending their children to college. They want to make sure once 
they are there, they are not penalized; that they can protect the 
equity in their home and, if they sell it, they will not be taxed. They 
are concerned about child care for their children, that they receive 
some help for child care; that if they have a small business that they 
have worked all their life for, that the capital gains relief will be 
targeted to small businesses; and, if they pass away, that the estate 
tax relief will be targeted to small businesses, family-owned 
businesses and family-owned farms.
  Mr. Speaker, I want very much to take that tax relief and put it 
directly in the pockets of people who are working hard to care for 
their families, working hard for a good quality of life and people who 
have worked hard all of their lives to contribute to create jobs in the 
community and to contribute to a business or a family-owned farm. That 
is the way we will keep this economy in America going. If we do not 
have a strong middle class, we will not have a strong economy.

[[Page H4225]]

  The people in my district are tired of seeing the majority of tax 
breaks go to those at the top. People working hard every day deserve 
tax relief, and I am going to be fighting all this week to help make 
sure that they are the ones that receive it.

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