[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 37 (Tuesday, March 3, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S2679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             U.N. TAXATION

  Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, I was misled into thinking that we would 
be able to introduce some amendments tonight and then was told, when I 
got down, that they are confining those amendments to only three. Let 
me mention that I have an amendment I feel very strongly about that I 
want to take up first thing in the morning. I will explain what it is. 
It is amendment No. 613.
  I can remember back in 1996, the United Nations Secretary General 
announced that the U.N. was interested in pursuing a global tax scheme. 
In response, Congress passed--and President Clinton signed into law--a 
policy rider on the Foreign Operations and State Department 
appropriations bills that would prevent the United Nations from using 
any U.S. funds to pursue a global tax scheme. The idea was that if we 
had a United Nations that wanted to have a global tax--they have been 
attempting to do this for many years because they don't want to be held 
accountable to anyone--then every time something comes up that is 
against the interests of the United States, we normally will pass a 
resolution saying that we are going to withhold a percentage of our 
dues to the United Nations until they change this policy. In 1996 and 
every year since, 13 years, we have had, as a part of that, language 
that says that the U.N. could not use any of the funds of the United 
States to pursue a global tax scheme of any type. The provision has 
appeared in every annual appropriations since 1996. This year marks the 
first time an annual appropriations bill will not contain this policy 
provision preventing U.S. tax dollars from funding U.N. global tax 
schemes.
  According to page 64 of division H of the joint explanatory 
statement, this policy provision has been intentionally left out of the 
fiscal year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill. Preventing U.S. taxpayers 
funding U.N. global taxes in annual appropriations bills has been a 
bipartisan U.S. policy for over a decade. It is very difficult for me 
to understand, because I haven't seen any explanation as to who is 
opposed to this. It was put in by Democrats and Republicans on a 
bipartisan basis. Now we find that it was left out. The amendment very 
simply puts back the language that we have had historically in the law 
for the past 13 years.
  Let me serve notice that I will make every effort to be first in line 
tomorrow morning to try to get this amendment in. I would invite any 
opposition that is out there, because I don't know of any opposition to 
it. Being fair, I think it is probably the fact that they wanted to 
shorten tonight to restrict it to three amendments.
  I ask unanimous consent that my time be extended to whatever time I 
shall pursue. I will not be more than 15 minutes from this point.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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