Congressional Record, Volume 153 Issue 61 (Tuesday, April 17, 2007)

[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 61 (Tuesday, April 17, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H3454-H3461]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

THE OFFICIAL TRUTH SQUAD

The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Castor). Under the Speaker's announced
policy of January 18, 2007, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price) is
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, thank you so very much.
Before I begin, I do want to just say that our hearts, our thoughts,
and our prayers are with all at Virginia Tech and in Blacksburg,
Virginia, today. As you know, Madam Speaker, an unspeakable horror
visited their campus, and it is absolutely impossible for any of us to
know what those who were directly connected to it are going through. We
were so incredibly heartened by their convocation today as we watched
it, and we noted that Hokie spirit is effervescent and incredibly
supportive. We are all with the Hokie Nation today. We wish them the
best and know that they are comforted by each other and by God's
amazing grace.
Madam Speaker, it is a great privilege for me to come to the floor
again this evening. I want to thank the leadership for the opportunity
to share some comments and to discuss an issue that our friends just
finished talking about a little bit.
This is a remarkable day every year. Madam Speaker, as you know,
today is once again the day when Americans reach deep into their
pockets and they pay Uncle Sam. Many Americans may be filling out their
tax forms right now, or they have just finished slogging through the
maze of the Tax Code jargon and crunching numbers and filling out form
after form after form. And today, Americans all across this Nation will
once again trust Washington with their money, because today is tax

[[Page H3455]]

day. It is usually April 15; by a couple different factors it became
April 17 this year. But nonetheless, Madam Speaker, it is tax day.
And I would suggest, Madam Speaker, that Americans are fed up with
the status quo of today, and I and many of my colleagues believe that
Americans deserve a different tomorrow. They deserve a tomorrow where
they won't be taxed from the day they are born until the day that they
die and at every single point in between.
Americans deserve a tomorrow where saving and investing are virtues,
not vices. Americans deserve a tomorrow where taxation brings efficient
and responsible representation, and they deserve a tomorrow where, when
the American people do their part, they understand that paying their
fair share is enough. And they deserve a tomorrow where the government
respects their hard work and appreciates their sacrifice. Only then,
Madam Speaker, will tomorrow be any different than today.
We are going to talk and discuss this evening the issue of taxes, the
tax structure that we have in our Nation that supports so many, many
things. We are going to talk about its fairness or lack of fairness. We
are going to talk about the amount of money that is received and
whether or not there are any options.
We are going to talk about positive solutions. And as we do so, we
like, when we come to the floor, to talk about facts. I want to talk
about facts. And I will remind my colleagues of one of our favorite
quotes. One of my favorite quotes comes from Senator Daniel Patrick
Moynihan who said that ``Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but
they are not entitled to their own facts.'' And so it is, Madam
Speaker, that as we come and talk about facts as they relate to taxes,
it is important that we use correct figures, that we use accurate
figures.
One of the figures that I ran across when looking at the tax issue
and realizing how large our government has grown and how many taxes the
Washington government takes, in 2005 the Federal Government took in
about $2.4 trillion. That is an awful lot of money, Madam Speaker, and
it is sometimes hard to kind of get your arms around what that actually
means. Well, in a relatively short period of time, less than 50 years,
what that means, based upon accounting for inflation and accounting for
growth, is that that amount of money is larger than the entire U.S.
economy was in 1959. So in less than one person's lifetime we have
grown the amount of tax revenue, and this is in constant dollars, real
dollars, we have grown the amount of tax revenue larger than our entire
government was and the economy was in 1959. So it is truly remarkable.
And what that brings about, Madam Speaker, is that we ought to be, as
representatives of the people, asking questions. Is that appropriate?
Is that an appropriate policy for our Nation? Should we be modifying
things? Should we be changing things? Should we be potentially more
fair to the American people? What should we be doing?
And so we will be joined tonight by a number of colleagues. One of my
good friends and fellow colleagues from Georgia is Congressman Phil
Gingrey. Congressman Gingrey is a fellow physician, represents a
district right outside of the city of Atlanta. I served with him in the
State senate, and it is a privilege to serve with him here in the
United States Congress. He is one of the true fiscal conservatives, an
individual who understands and appreciates the importance of tax
revenue, yes, but also the importance of fairness on the part of our
Federal Government.
So I am pleased to welcome my good friend from Georgia, Congressman
Gingrey.
Mr. GINGREY. Congressman Price, I thank you so much for letting me
join with you and the Truth Squad in talking about the real truth in
regard to what burdens are on the American people, particularly on this
day, tax day, April 17. And it reminds me that there is another date
coming up pretty soon, and I think that is on April 22, and that is
called tax freedom day. And that day gets later and later in the
calendar year each and every year. That is how long a person has to
work to pay their tax burden, not only to the Federal Government but to
local and State and the entire tax burden. Almost a third of the year,
Madam Speaker, people have to work to pay the tax burden.
So we in the Republican Party feel very strongly that we need to cut
taxes, simplify taxes, lower taxes. And we can do that, and we have
done that. We did it in 2001, we did it in 2003. And while we heard
from our friends on the other side of the aisle in the previous hour,
the so-called Blue Dog Coalition, in regard to the costs to the revenue
stream of the tax cuts, saying that we only cut taxes for people making
more than $400,000 a year, when in fact, Madam Speaker, everybody who
pays taxes got a tax cut under the tax cut provisions that this
President and the former majority, the Republican Party, enacted for
the American people.
And while, when you crunch the numbers, that was estimated to cost
$1.3 trillion, or $130 billion each and every year over a 10-year
period of time, because supposedly you would be taking in less revenue,
in fact it stimulated the economy; and over a 2\1/2\ year period of
time, the amount of revenue that came into the Federal Government
actually increased by $250 billion.
So our good friends, the Blue Dogs, play a little bit loose with the
truth in regard to their calculus. And really it is not calculus, Madam
Speaker, it is simple math. The gentlemen that spoke, the four or five
of them in the previous hours, our friends, the Blue Dogs, they would
make great red dogs. They come from States that the so-called Blue Dog
Democrats are traditionally conservative, they are fiscally
conservative. They are conservative on social issues.
And we had the gentleman from Arkansas, we had a Member from
Tennessee, we had a Member from Indiana, we had a Member from Ohio. It
doesn't surprise me that they would be sounding like Republicans,
because many of them represent Republican-leaning, typically
traditional districts. And when we earn back our majority, Madam
Speaker, I think that the Blue Dogs that we are hearing from, the five
by tonight, there are a total of 43, many of them would make great red
dogs; and I look forward to the day that they join us.
But, Madam Speaker, in the meantime, I think that I need to talk to
them about their math a little bit. They spent some time talking about
the debt and the fact that all of this money that we have had to
borrow, this $8.8 trillion worth of debt, comes from foreign countries.
The gentleman from Arkansas listed, I think, the top nine. And they
want to imply that all of the debt is money that we have had to borrow
from rogue nations, if you will. But they are not rogue nations.

{time} 2130

But the point I want to make, Madam Speaker, is that only about 25
percent of that debt is held by any foreign nation, whether we are
talking about Germany or France or Spain or Portugal or, yes, China or
India. Seventy-five percent of that debt is held by my mom and my dad
and our Blue Dog grandparents and corporate America and the United
States citizens. Americans borrow or lend that money to the United
States Government because they have faith in the full credit of this
great country. So this implication that only rogue nations are willing
to borrow money or lend money to this country is totally ludicrous.
And if the gentleman from Georgia, my good friend and colleague, Dr.
Price, will indulge me for a few minutes, I want to also point out
another very, very misleading figure. They take that debt, that $8.8
trillion worth of debt that has accumulated over a number of years.
Don't forget, Madam Speaker, and my good friends on the other side of
the aisle, they controlled this place for 40 years. And that $8.8
trillion worth of debt didn't just occur overnight.
But they take 300 million people, man, woman and child, the
population of this great country, and they divide it into $8.8
trillion, and they come up with $27,000 worth of debt for every man,
woman and child in this country.
Well, Madam Speaker, what is the gross domestic product, the wealth
of this country? I think 2006, maybe would be the last figure that I
have, it was about $13 trillion. So you divide that same number into
the gross domestic product, you could say that the share of the wealth
of this country of every man, woman and child is $44,000.

[[Page H3456]]

So, like I say, they are playing a little loose with the numbers, and
they go on and talk about this budget resolution that they have got and
how they are going to balance the budget and have no deficit over a 5-
year period of time and actually have a little bit of money in the bank
in 2012.
How do they do that, Madam Speaker? They do it by letting the tax
cuts of the Republican majority and our President expire. The decrease
in the marginal rate for every person that is paying taxes, the
increase, the doubling of the child tax credit, the elimination, and
once again, reinserting the marriage tax penalty, and that is total,
when you add up every one of those tax cuts that we enacted that they
intend to let expire in 2010 and 2011, it is a total, I think, and my
colleague from Georgia and my other colleagues that are here tonight
will agree, almost $400 billion. And I think that is the largest tax
increase on the people of this country in the history of this country.
So here, again, I thank the gentleman from Georgia for bringing out
the truth once again, as he does so well in the Truth Squad's
discussions. And I thank him for letting me weigh in a little bit
tonight. And with that I will yield back to the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I thank my good friend and colleague from
Georgia for your comments, for your perspective, and for the truth and
the facts that you bring to the table, and you mentioned a number of
them. I would just like to highlight two of them because they are
incredibly important, Madam Speaker, for the American people to
appreciate. The first is that Tax Freedom Day. We talk about tax day,
but Tax Freedom Day has yet to arrive. Depending on what State you are
in, I think the earliest State, Tax Freedom Day is April 22, which is
next week. But what that means, Madam Speaker, is that every single
American who has been working since the first of the year, on average,
every single one, is continuing to work from January 1 until now,
through at least April 22 to pay the taxes that they owe. They haven't
even started to work for themselves or their family. Madam Speaker,
that is a tax system that is broken and flawed.
The other fact that you brought out, my good friend from Georgia,
Congressman Gingrey brought out, was that the proposal that was passed
on this floor just a little over two weeks ago by our friends on the
other side of the aisle, many of whom call themselves Blue Dogs. We are
checking to make certain, Madam Speaker. We think they are probably lap
dogs because of the bills that they have been supporting. And one of
them was this budget that was passed that will result in a $400 billion
tax increase for the American people, the largest tax increase in the
history of the Nation. That is a fact.
I want to mention a couple of other facts and then call on a couple
of other good friends who have joined me this evening. Oftentimes,
Madam Speaker, you hear people say, well, the wealthy in this Nation
don't pay any taxes, or they get a remarkable tax benefit, that they
are given favored treatment. You hear that oftentimes by our friends on
the other side.
This chart, Madam Speaker, really points out the truth. These are
actual numbers and actual facts. And that is that the top 1 percent of
wage earners in this Nation, the top 1 percent, pay 36.9 percent of the
taxes. That is, the top 1 percent pay 36.9 percent of the taxes. If you
take the top 10 percent of wage earners in this Nation, the taxes that
they pay, the total revenue that they pay in terms of taxes for this
Nation, 68.2 percent. And the top half, the top 50 percent pay 96.7
percent of the tax revenue that comes into this Nation. Madam Speaker,
that is a fact. It is important to appreciate that because our good
friends on the other side of the aisle so often want to play class
warfare. They want to pit one side against the other. And what this
shows very, very clearly is that individuals all across this Nation are
paying their fair share and then some.
I have been joined by many good friends who will comment about
various aspects of our tax system and tax policy, as well as the budget
that has been proposed. And right now I would like to ask a good friend
from Texas to join me, and look forward to his comments, Congressman
Kevin Brady from Texas, who has a wonderful business background and
appreciates the importance of appropriate government policy and making
certain that we allow all Americans, all Americans, the greatest
opportunity in this wonderful Nation. Congressman Brady, thanks so much
for joining us.
Mr. BRADY of Texas. Well, thank you. And I appreciate joining the two
gentlemen from Georgia who continue to look out every day for the
family's pocket books, rather than Washington's pocket books, which I
fear is too deep. And the point I always try to make, I am in my 11th
year in Congress, serve on the Ways and Means Committee, have worked on
all of President Bush's tax relief. And I am convinced that Washington
has all the money it needs. It just doesn't have all the money it
wants. And there is a big difference between the two.
And tonight, as you and I talk, millions of Americans are scrambling
at the last minute to file their taxes, rummaging through cabinets and
drawers and bank statements, anxious to try to comply with the
complicated Tax Code. And they are willing to pay their fair share. But
our code is so complex that they worry.
Paying taxes is bad enough. But the time wasted in figuring them is
almost worse. You shouldn't need an accountant to do your taxes, and
you shouldn't live in fear of just making an honest mistake. For our
sanity's sake, and I think for our children's sake, we really need to
sunset this awful Tax Code and replace it with something far more
simple, like a flat tax or my preference, a retail sales tax. And I
love the retail sales tax because, can you imagine, can you imagine
never having to fill out a tax return again in your lifetime? Never.
Can you imagine the IRS being completely, totally out of your life
forever?
And as we talk about how complex this code is, let's not forget we
need to keep our taxes low. Tax Freedom Day for Texas families is this
Thursday. And that is the first day since New Year's that Texans will
start working for themselves and not for the government. For the rest
of the country, on average, you have still got two more weeks, April
30. In fact, most families in America will get to the fifth month of
the year. Can you imagine? The fifth month of the year before they stop
working for the government and start working for their dreams, for
their families, for what they want to accomplish in life. And I think
most of us would feel better if we felt that Washington wasn't wasting
so much of our hard-earned money.
My families are worried that the new Democrat budget allows President
Bush's tax relief to expire, which would increase taxes on families in
Texas $2,700 a year; $2,700 more for each, a typical Texas family.
I talked over the April work period with Kirk and Sandy Noyes of the
Woodlands; visited with Marty and Ty Drake in their home in Livingston;
Buck and Ava Anderson of Cleveland in their living room; sat down in
the kitchen with Ed and Connie Heiman of Magnolia; Elmer and Pauline
Hensley of Lumberton; Pat and Ashley Canfield of Huntsville. We talked
about what that $2,700 would mean to their families, and they talked
about the medical bills for their young children because co-pays and
deductibles add up so quickly. They talked about car insurance, how
expensive that is. Marty Drake is a police officer. He said, You know,
I will work overtime, all of my high school football games, use all
that money just to pay that extra bill.
One woman, who is it? Connie Heiman in Magnolia, she works at a
doctor's office just so she can pay the health care. And she said, We
don't have any extra money. And her husband runs the flooring store in
Magnolia. He said, I can't work longer. I work 6\1/2\ days a week as it
is.
And my belief is that we are, despite what Washington thinks, we are
an overtaxed Nation. And all you need to do is look at your own day to
understand it. We wake up in the morning, get in the shower, we pay a
water tax. We grab a cup of coffee, pay a sales tax. Drive down to
work, pay a fuel tax. At work we pay, not just payroll tax but income
tax as well. Get home at night, flip on the switch, walk in the door,
turn on the lights, pay the electricity tax, pick up the phone, pay a
telephone tax, turn on the TV, pay cable tax, kiss

[[Page H3457]]

our wife goodnight, pay a marriage penalty tax and we do that every day
of our life. And when we die, we pay a death tax. We are an overtaxed
Nation.
And in my belief, we need to continue, not just for our economy, but
for our families, we need to continue President Bush's tax relief
because our families can't take this extra hit. The marriage penalty
will come back to life. That is wrong. In fact, Ways and Means, and I
will finish with this, because we have other Members who need to visit
as well. But we did the tax relief not for grins and giggles, but for
two important reasons. One was fairness. The marriage penalty is
unfair. The death tax is unfair. The State and local sales tax
structure, it was unfair for other States to have an advantage. And
another reason is to spur this economy. After 9/11, we took three big
hits: 9/11, the recession and the wonderful Enrons and WorldComs of the
world. Our economy took huge hits. We targeted tax relief, and we have
had 40 straight months of job growth, created 7.5 million new jobs. We
are going to risk that? We are going to risk this strong economy
raising taxes on families and small businesses? It doesn't make sense.
My belief is Washington needs to tighten its belt before we ask our
families and small businesses to tighten theirs.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I thank the gentleman from Texas for his
wonderful summary of the remarkable taxes that each and every one of us
are exposed to on a daily basis, everything we do. And that is why I
say that the American people deserve more than that. They deserve a
government that is more fair than that, especially in the area of
taxation. The $2,700 for each individual in Texas is about what they
would pay, if the policies of the other side go through, about what
they would pay in the State of Georgia as well. And the folks have a
lot of ability to figure out what they ought to do with that money and
a greater priority that they ought to do with that money, as opposed to
what the government ought to do with that money. So as most people
understand and appreciate, they know how to spend their money better
than the Federal Government.
And somebody mentioned earlier today that the Federal Government,
whenever they do anything on behalf of the American people, it costs
three times as much as it would in the private sector. So that even
gets to the point more about what the facts of the situation are and
why they belie what we are doing, why they would draw anyone to the
appropriate conclusion that we are taxed too much as a Nation.
I have got a few other folks who have joined me, and I appreciate it
so much. And I am joined by my good friend from North Carolina,
Congressman McHenry, who also is an individual who has served in the
State legislature and knows well the importance of fiscal
responsibility and the importance of making certain that we don't
overtax our Americans all across this Nation. I welcome you. I look
forward to your comments.
Mr. McHENRY. I thank my good friend from Georgia, Dr. Price. Thank
you for your leadership and for being here on the floor and being so
active. Your constituents should be proud of you. And I thank them for
electing you.
Madam Speaker, here on Tax Day, in 2007, I hearken back to the words
that Ronald Reagan said. He said, our Federal Tax Code is, in short,
utterly impossible, utterly unjust, and completely counterproductive.
It reeks with injustice and is fundamentally un-American and has earned
a rebellion, and it is time we rebelled.

{time} 2145

That is a quote from Ronald Reagan in 1983.
Well, I think it is high time we rebel. Today is one day in every
American's life where they realize how complex and how horrible our
Federal Tax Code is. The Tax Code stands at an astonishing 16,485 pages
in length, and there are 1,638 different tax forms on the IRS's Web
site. That is outstandingly horrible for the American people.
In 2006, the average taxpayer spent 37.8 hours crunching numbers to
complete even the most basic tax form, Form 1040. That is nearly an
entire work week spent in filing taxes. Even worse, small businesses
spend about 80 hours in preparing their tax returns. That is a 2-week
vacation for the average working American family.
And, in total, the American people in a recent poll think the Tax
Code is obscene. Eighty percent think the Tax Code is too complicated
while only 3 percent believe the Tax Code is just fine the way it is. I
concur with that 80 percent, Madam Speaker.
Although just empowered a few months, the new Democratic majority in
the House with our new Speaker, they have proposed the largest tax
increase in American history. The largest tax increase in American
history. They propose a $2,066,675,000,000 tax increase. What does that
mean for the average American? Well, the average American, a family of
four making $50,000 a year, will see a tax hike of roughly $2,092 this
year. What is worse is that my constituents back home in North Carolina
will see an average tax increase of $2,671 per year. That is money they
could be spending on education. That is money they could be spending on
their kids. That is money they could be spending in their community.
Instead, the Democrats want that money to come here to fund the bloated
bureaucracy in Washington, D.C.
Now, you understand the Republicans have cut taxes over the last
decade, and that is very positive. Actually, as the Republican majority
for 12 years, we proposed a tax cut every year. Every single year we
proposed that. Now, Democrat President Bill Clinton didn't support it,
but once we got George Bush in office in 2001, he proposed a massive
tax cut.
What has that done? Well, the Democrats say that it is not enough
money coming into government. Well, they are wrong. They are absolutely
wrong. The Democrats are wrong when they say government doesn't have
enough money.
Just this last year, government income amounted to over $2.4
trillion. Now, let's put this in historical context. That is the
largest income to any government in the history of the planet. Now,
let's think this thing through. $2.4 trillion, is that enough to fund
our Federal bureaucracy? According to the Democrats, the answer is
``no.'' They want more. They want the American people to give more to
the Federal Government.
Let's put that $2.4 trillion in context. Well, there are only two
countries on Earth that have economies larger than our Federal
Government. Aside from ours, Germany and Japan are the only countries
on Earth that have economies larger than our Federal income. Now, the
scary part is that Germany only barely beats the Federal Government
with its roughly similar size economy.
There is a lot of talk about how the Chinese economy is booming and
it is on the rise. Well, it is true and it is a big threat to our jobs
here in the United States, and it is a big economic concern for us as a
nation. But the Chinese economy, though booming, is only $1.9 trillion,
and that means it is a half trillion dollars smaller than our Federal
income. The total gross domestic product of China is smaller than the
income to our Federal Government.
So, Madam Speaker, if we look at a recent poll by Pew Research,
people were asked what they thought was the best way to reduce the
Federal deficit, and in that poll the result was pretty simple. Only 9
percent said that tax increases were the best way. A combined 69
percent said they would rather see government reduce spending. Now, not
only do I agree with the 80 percent of the American people that say the
Tax Code is too complex, that it is obscene; I also agree with that 69
percent that say the way to reduce government is to reduce spending.
That is pretty simple. It is common sense to the American people.
Madam Speaker, I urge this Democrat majority to rethink their tax
increase strategy, because it is going to raise taxes on every American
who pays taxes. And, furthermore, those that are in the low income of
our economy are actually going to see their taxes increase as well
because they are going to roll back all the Bush tax cuts over the last
7 years. I think that is the wrong thing for the American people. It is
the wrong thing for my constituents of western North Carolina. And I
think that that is something that is going to harm our economy, the
strength of our growing economy. So I

[[Page H3458]]

think the Democrats should rethink their tax increase strategy and do
what is right for the American people. Reform the Tax Code. Cut taxes
at the very least, but reform the Tax Code so we can actually inject
more capital into the marketplace and allow people to keep more of what
they earn because it is good for their families and good for our
economy, and I think it is generally good for America.
With that, I thank you, Congressman Price, for hosting this important
hour, especially on such an important day to the American people when
they have to go file those tax returns. We know how frustrated they get
because we have to file those same tax returns, and it is important
that we remind our constituents that we are subject to the same laws
that they are, and that is a very good thing and a great motivation for
tax reform.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from North
Carolina and I appreciate his perspective. And I think he said a couple
of important things. One was that he pointed out that the average
American spends almost 40 hours preparing his or her taxes. That is one
whole week's worth of work. That is 2 percent of the productive time of
each and every American spent just on the unproductive activity of
preparing their tax returns. If that doesn't scream for reform, Madam
Speaker, I am not sure what does.
I am pleased to be joined by another good friend, a new Member of
Congress, a freshman Member from Tennessee, Congressman David Davis,
who I know has run a business and understands the importance of the
economy's being vibrant, of the appropriate level of taxes not just for
businesses but for individuals.
And I appreciate your joining us tonight and look forward to your
comments.
Mr. DAVID DAVIS of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman
from Georgia for yielding.
Congressman Price, you do such a great job. Thank you for your
leadership. Thank you for your willingness to spread the truth.
I welcome the opportunity to speak to Americans on tax day. I know
some of us, as we draw near to midnight here, a lot of people still
working on those forms, trying to get them down to the post office. It
reminds me of what Ronald Reagan said back in the early 1980s. Ronald
Reagan said, ``We don't have a trillion dollar debt because we haven't
taxed enough. We have a trillion dollar debt because we spend too
much.'' That seems like commonsense to me, and I think the people that
are listening to us tonight understand that. They understand they have
to sit around the kitchen table and decide how much money is coming in
and how much money goes out.
Small business owners have to do the same thing. They sit around
sometimes at a little break room table and decide, am I going to hire
that next person or am I going to have to lay somebody off? Am I going
to be able to afford another machine to be more productive so I can
grow the business and be good for the economy? We understand that as
Americans.
Today, tax day, families across America are feeling the cost of the
Federal Government. I know we feel it. I know the American people are
feeling it. It is one of the reasons I decided to run for Congress. I
did own a small business, and I have actually owned a couple. I grew up
in a small community in a little county called Unicoi County in East
Tennessee, up in the mountains near North Carolina. And I worked my way
through college. I actually worked two jobs, went to school full time,
and was fortunate enough from that to start some businesses. And I sold
one of those businesses.
And one of the reasons I decided to run for Congress was because the
government took too much of my money. And I really looked at it as
being my money because I earned it. My wife and I started the business.
We took the risk. We put our home up. If that business hadn't
succeeded, the bank could have come and taken our home. And when I sold
the business, I should have been able to keep the proceeds and take
care of my two children. It shouldn't have gone to the government. And
I decided that I needed to get involved.
According to the Congressional Research Service, President Bush's
program of comprehensive tax relief was well timed to respond to a weak
economy. Do you remember back in the early 2000s we had just been hit
by terrorist extremists, and we had natural disasters. So those tax
relief packages that he put in place have actually worked. Tax relief
enacted in 2001 granted immediate tax rebates, reduced marginal tax
rates, and lowered the marriage tax penalty. The tax relief of 2003
accelerated much of the 2001 growth which would ultimately strengthen
our economy.
We are residing and living in a strong economy. The Republican tax
cut relief has seen nearly 4 straight years, 21 straight quarters, of
economic growth, while adding 7.5 million new jobs. Seven point five
million new jobs, that excites me. And we were able to do that because
people are allowed to keep their money at home.
You see, government really doesn't create jobs. Government takes
money. But if you leave that money back in local communities, that
money is put to work and it does good things.
The Congressional Budget Office confirmed that the tax cuts of 2003
have helped boost the Federal revenues by 68 percent. Commonsense
again. If you allow people to keep their tax dollars at home, the
economy grows. And this should be understood by both sides of the
aisle. This actually works for Democrats and Republicans. It worked for
President Kennedy, it worked for President Reagan, and it has worked
for President Bush. This is bipartisan. We all ought to understand that
keeping taxes low, keeping spending low, the economy will grow and the
coffers of government will grow. I think that is a good thing.
We should all work to make the successful tax cuts of 2001 and 2003
permanent. If they are not made permanent, which I am convinced that
this new ``hold on to your wallet Congress'' has in mind, we are going
to have a problem in our economy. For example, 84 million women will
see their taxes increased by $1,970. Now, we all say here for the low
and middle income, but if you are a woman, with this new tax increase
of $400 billion, your average tax is going to go up $1,970.
We are going to see 48 million married couples' taxes increased by
$2,726. It seems inherently unfair to me. Forty-two million families
will see their taxes go up by $2,084. And I thought we were here for
the low and middle income. These are the people that are paying taxes.
Twenty-six million small business owners will see a devastating tax
increase of $3,637. The small business owner that runs the little store
down the street or creates five jobs on the corner, who probably
employs some of your friends in your local community, they are going to
see their taxes go up over $3,600. And where are they going to get that
$3,600 to send up to Washington? They are going to get it from you, the
American people. They are going to either increase the cost of goods
and we are going to see inflation, or they are going to decide they
can't hire that last employee or maybe they have to let that last
employee go.
Five million low-income individuals and couples will no longer be
exempt from Federal income taxes.

{time} 2200

This is going to hurt the very people that we say we are trying to
help.
Again, we should work in a bipartisan manner, Republicans and
Democrats, to make sure that the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 are made
permanent. I am very concerned if we don't do that, that we are going
to see our economic growth go into a slide, and we are going to have a
problem that we are going to have to deal with.
Just two weeks ago, Washington Democrats passed a fiscal blueprint
that raises taxes on Americans in one fell swoop. As part of this ill-
gotten budget, taxpayers in Tennessee, my home State, will not be
allowed to deduct their sales tax from their Federal income tax, which
is only fair because we don't have an income tax. It makes us equal
with all the other States. Taxes on small businesses in east Tennessee
will go up. The child tax credit will decrease from $1,000 to $500. The
marriage penalty is coming back. Residents of the First District of
Tennessee's average expense in taxes is going up over $2,000. The
definition of a

[[Page H3459]]

small business will decrease from $400,000 to $200,000. Dividends will
no longer be taxed at the personal gains rate, thereby increasing
double taxation of dividends by as much as 62 percent. People all
across America voted for change, but they are not getting the change
they voted for.
We have a choice between bigger economy or bigger government, and the
majority party has made it their choice to have a bigger government.
And if anyone tells you that Americans aren't paying their fair share
for a civilized society, they must remember that Americans pay more in
their taxes than they do for housing, clothing and heating combined.
And also remember that Americans this year will have to work until the
last week of April in order to pay their taxes. That is over 114 days
just to cover their tax bills. So on tax day, today, when we feel it
the most, everyone needs to remember, we need to hold the line on
spending, reduce earmarks, and pass line item veto, and crack down on
worthless pork barrel spending and be good stewards of the taxpayers'
money. And again I remind you, Ronald Reagan said, ``We don't have a
trillion dollar debt because we haven't taxed enough; we have a
trillion dollar debt because we spend too much.''
And with that, I yield back.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I thank my friend from Tennessee for his
eloquent comments and for really bringing perspective to the issue.
It really befuddles me as to how our friends on the other side of the
aisle can say that they need to raise taxes to raise revenue, because
if you look at this chart, Madam Speaker, what you appreciate is that
as revenues were going down in the early part of this decade, what the
solution was, as it is always a solution, is to lower taxes and you
allow people to keep more of their hard-earned money. You put more
money back in the pockets of American people and what happens? The
economy flourishes, and lo and behold we have a record $2.4 trillion of
revenue to the Federal Government because of decreased taxes.
I am so proud to be joined by my good friends tonight to talk about
this issue. And we are pleased to welcome once again Congresswoman
Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee, an individual who also knows and
appreciates the importance of fiscal responsibility and the importance
that allowing individuals to keep more of their hard-earned money means
to their own freedom and their own liberty. I welcome you and look
forward to your comments this evening.
Mrs. BLACKBURN. I thank the gentleman from Georgia.
Madam Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to be on the floor
tonight and talk a little bit about what the hold-on-to-your-wallet
Congress is doing to Americans as we come to this tax day. You know, we
circle April 15 on the calendar every year. I tell you, everybody knows
that. They look forward to that day with dread. And I have said so many
times I think the only thing good that happens that day is my nephew,
Chip Wedgeworth, has a birthday every year on April 15. So that is the
highlight of our April 15.
I think the reason that Americans look at April 15 with that sense of
dread is because they know, our constituents know, that we are
overtaxed. They know that the government is overspent. It is plain and
simple to them. They know that the government does not have a revenue
problem, they've got a spending problem. And they never take the time
to go through the disciplines that are necessary to reduce what the
Federal Government spends. Those are things that American men and women
who are working know. They know that government is overspent; they know
that they are overtaxed. They know that the government doesn't have a
revenue problem, that it has a spending problem. And Americans do mark
this date on the calendar. They resent what it stands for.
I thank the gentleman from Georgia for what he is doing on this
issue.
Madam Speaker, it is so nice to be on this floor and be joined by my
colleagues who are real people, who live real lives, as the gentleman
from Tennessee was talking about his business; people that understand
what it takes to start a business, to run a business, to maintain a
business. They are not part of the liberal elite. They are part of real
people, this wonderful American middle class that makes this Nation
run.
You know, I think another thing that kind of gets to people as they
are sitting there trying to get those taxes in the mail tonight and
figure these forms out, these thousands upon thousands upon thousands
of pages of the tax form, you know, I had one of my constituents in a
town hall meeting say he couldn't read the Tax Code, it was bigger than
the King James version of the Bible and he has never been able to get
through the Bible, and so he definitely couldn't get through the Tax
Code. That is how big and unwieldy this thing has become.
But they look at this and they know that what we've got is a
bureaucracy that is out of control. It is unresponsive; it is out of
control. And the liberal elites who have created this bureaucracy think
they are smarter than everybody else. They think that they know what
should be happening for and to the rest of the country. And you know, I
am right in there with them, don't like that very much.
I think that our constituents all know, too, that just as we are
talking about, they know that they are overtaxed and government is
overspent. They know that government is never going to get enough of
their money.
And my colleague from Tennessee mentioned sales tax deductibility.
Madam Speaker, I think it is just really so very sad that this Congress
chose to let those tax deductions expire, which in effect will enact
the largest tax increase in history on the American people, all to put
more into the coffers of a government so that the liberal elites get
their hands on it and they spend it. There again, the people know that
they are overtaxed and they know government is overspent.
As we talk about what is before us today, I think that it is
important. I was looking at one of the gentleman's posters that he has
down there about mandatory spending growth. Isn't it amazing that we
see this mandatory spending growth? The budget that our colleagues
across the aisle, the Democrats, have chosen to pass makes our tax
reductions temporary, makes tax relief for all of our families
temporary, and makes spending permanent.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Will the gentlewoman yield?
Mrs. BLACKBURN. I would gladly yield.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I brought along a number of charts. And we are
not getting to a lot of them, but some of them we will.
This chart is an important one because this shows the mandatory
spending growth, something I like to coin actually ``automatic spending
growth'' because it is not mandatory. The Federal Government has
determined that that is where we are going to spend money. And it
automatically increases. These are the automatic programs, which are
basically Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid; and unless they see
reforms, what we will have seen from 1995 to 2017 is an increase from
48.7 percent to 62.2 percent of our economy.
Mrs. BLACKBURN. If the gentleman will yield?
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I would be happy to yield.
Mrs. BLACKBURN. I think what we see here is so important, and what
you've just said speaks to the issue. Because a budget should reflect
not the priorities of the government, but the priorities of the people.
And what we have seen in the budget that our friends across the aisle
brought that eliminated the tax reductions, that increased the taxes,
that adds to that, knowing that people are overtaxed, knowing that
government is overspent, is the fact that all of these automatic
increases, mandatory spending growth, not addressing entitlement
reforms that are needed, but allowing that to be put on autopilot, and
increase and increase and making that spending permanent while you make
the tax reductions temporary.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Will the gentlelady yield?
Mrs. BLACKBURN. I will yield.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. This chart really points that out, ``Ignoring
Entitlement Reform,'' which is exactly what occurred 2\1/2\ weeks ago
when our friends passed our budget.
When the Republicans were in charge, with the Balanced Budget Act

[[Page H3460]]

we passed in 1987 we saved nearly $130 billion. With the Deficit
Reduction Act just a few short years ago in 2005, about $40 billion.
With the budget that was adopted 2\1/2\ weeks ago, none, zero. No
entitlement reform. No automatic spending reform. And consequently,
what you know and what I know is that we are on track to spend that
62.2 percent in a few very short years.
Mrs. BLACKBURN. The gentleman is exactly right. That is why we have
to look at that budget document on this tax day and say, they laid the
marker down. They showed us what their priorities are. Their priorities
are a bigger government and higher taxes on the American people.
I would invite all of them to join us, join us in reducing taxes.
Join us in making these tax reductions permanent. Join us in making
sales tax deductibility permanent. Join us in being certain that
middle-class Americans get first right of refusal on their paycheck,
that it is not the Federal Government that gets first right of refusal
on that paycheck. Before those deductions are taken out, let's be
certain that the American people have the opportunity to sit down at
that kitchen table and decide how they are going to spend those hard-
earned dollars, because it is their work.
You know, American families, individuals in my district in Tennessee,
we talked a lot about taxes as we went through this district work
period. I had one of my constituents stand up in one of our meetings
and he said, Marsha, I've got sweat equity in my paycheck; I've got a
lot of sweat equity in my paycheck when I get it. And it just galls me
every time I see a little bit more of that paycheck going to
Washington, D.C. for programs that don't work. He talked about the
spinach farmers and the fisheries and the peanut storage people and
Katrina relief and all these things that were the waste; and the
additions and the add-ons and the pork barrel spending that got put
into the bill that would have funded our military.
On this tax day, as people are going to the mailboxes tonight, they
know that they are not undertaxed, they are overtaxed. They know that
government is not underspent, it is overspent. And they know that the
Democrats laid down a marker. They made a choice when they did this
budget. That budget choice was, do you want to stand with the American
families and let them have first right of refusal on that paycheck, or
do you want to give first right of refusal to the bureaucrats and the
liberal elites in Washington, D.C.? And they made their choice.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I thank the gentlewoman for her perspective and
for her passion for appropriate policies here out of Washington on
behalf of the American people.
And you've heard a lot about what our friends on the other side of
the aisle have proposed. And it is important to the look at the
numbers, Madam Speaker, the numbers on what has been proposed by our
good friends on the other side of the aisle when the clock strikes
midnight on December 21, 2010.
They have proposed and they have enacted a budget that will result in
increasing the ordinary income rates from 35 percent to 39.6 percent;
increasing capital gains from 15 percent to 20 percent; increasing
dividends from 15 percent to 39.6 percent; increasing estate taxes from
zero percent to 55 percent; decreasing the child tax credit from $1,000
to $500; and, amazingly, increasing the lowest tax bracket from 10
percent to 15 percent. A remarkable $400 billion in new taxes, a
remarkable display of, frankly, lack of appreciation and lack of
respect for the American worker.
Now what is the solution? A lot of things can be done. What we would
propose and have proposed is something that respects American values
and I believe results in increasing American vision, and that is a
taxpayer bill of rights, a Federal taxpayer bill of rights. Many folks
will recognize the sound of that because there are some States around
this Nation that have indeed enacted a taxpayer bill of rights. The
problem at the State level, however, is that all they can address is
State revenue, State money.

{time} 2215

But, Madam Speaker, because of the actions of our friends on the
other side of the aisle and because they want to dig deeper, we believe
strongly that a taxpayer bill of rights is appropriate for the Federal
Government. We believe that taxpayers have a right to a Federal
Government that does not grow beyond their ability to pay for it. That
means that the Federal Government ought not grow more than the
population grows or more than the cost of living increases, and that
can be put into law and that is what part of the taxpayer bill of
rights does.
We also believe that Americans have a right to receive back every
single dollar that they entrust to the American people for their
retirement. That is the Social Security issue, Madam Speaker. Right now
the Federal Government, right now Washington spends money that the
American people send to Washington to cover for their Social Security
compensation, and what does Washington do, oftentimes it spends it on
other programs. That is not right and it is not fair. I hear about it
when I am back home, and I suspect you do as well.
We believe taxpayers have a right to a balanced budget without
raising taxes. You can balance the budget in one of two ways. You can
raise taxes to try to increase revenue, which doesn't actually work,
but you can have it work on paper. You can increase taxes and say,
well, we will balance the budget that way, which is what our friends on
the other side of the aisle have done. They say we will increase taxes
$400 billion, and that is the way we will balance the budget.
Madam Speaker, there is another way you can balance the budget, and
that is by decreasing spending, and that is what we would propose
through a taxpayer bill of rights.
Fourth, we would propose fundamental and fair tax reform. My good
friend from Texas mentioned earlier the proposal for a flat tax. That
is one way to do it. I support the fair tax, the national retail sales
tax, something that would do away with the IRS, do away with that
organization that so many Americans dread and results in so much pain
and heartache on the part of the American people.
Finally, a taxpayer bill of rights that would require a supermajority
for any increase in taxes for our Nation, something that was in effect
until the very first day of this Congress when this new majority said,
``no,'' we ought not have a supermajority to increase taxes, we ought
to let a simple majority do it which results in a huge opportunity for
an increase in taxation and has resulted in, by this new majority,
policies which will significantly increase taxes.
So, Madam Speaker, what we have done tonight is outlined the problem,
outlined the history, talked about what kinds of solutions can be
proposed and what we would propose in the way of an appropriate Federal
taxpayer bill of rights.
I would like to close with a quote from Thomas Jefferson who had a
perspective on taxation. He said: ``To take from one because it is
thought his own industry has acquired too much, in order to spare
others who have not exercised equal industry and skill is to violate
arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to
everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by
it.'' That was Thomas Jefferson, Madam Speaker.
Madam Speaker, each and every one of us is remarkably privileged to
serve in this House of Representatives. It is an honor to represent my
constituents, as I know each Member feels it is an honor to represent
theirs. We live in a wondrous and glorious nation, the longest
surviving democracy in the history of the world, a nation that has
resulted in, because of its actions, more freedom and more prosperity
for more individuals than any nation in the history of mankind.
It is commonsense and responsibility on behalf of the Members who
represent all of the constituents across this Nation that have resulted
in those policies. I, as I know my colleagues who have been here this
evening, look forward to working with Members on both sides of the
aisle to bring about that accountability and responsibility, and to
bring about the kind of credit and honor to our constituents that they
so richly deserve by their labor.
Madam Speaker, I look forward to making certain that we hold each
other accountable to establish the

[[Page H3461]]

kinds of policies that are appropriate and the kinds of policies that
will result in the greatest amount of prosperity and freedom for future
generations of Americans.

____________________