[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 140 (Thursday, October 9, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H8808]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 THE PRESIDENT SUPPORTS THE IRS, THE REPUBLICANS SUPPORT THE TAXPAYERS

  (Mr. TIAHRT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TIAHRT. Mr. Speaker, the President has announced that he is 
supporting the IRS, and we are announcing here in Congress that the 
Republicans are supporting the taxpayers. We are on their side. In a 
nutshell, that is about what it comes down to.
  Of course, that is not the news to anyone who has followed politics 
in this country since the 1960s. Conservatives are the only friends the 
taxpayers have had since the 1960's. Taxpayers have known ever since 
the death of John F. Kennedy that liberal Democrats have a soft spot 
for the IRS and their heavy-handed ways.
  It seems that the tradition continues. After having exposed the IRS 
abuses before a congressional committee, conservatives in Congress 
propose a bipartisan plan to fix the IRS and bring real accountability 
to that agency for the first time in a long time.
  But the White House does not agree. The White House thinks that the 
creation of a politically appointed panel that has absolutely no power 
will really shake things up at the IRS. Hello?
  Mr. Speaker, if the White House thinks the IRS is going to change the 
way it does business as a result of this panel, things are even worse 
there than I thought. Then again, maybe it is just reflective of their 
attitude to support the leadership of the IRS over the taxpayers.

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