[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 38 (Wednesday, March 4, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H2932]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      MORE TAXES--LESS PROSPERITY

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, history shows that if you tax 
something, you get less of it; if you subsidize something, you're going 
to get more of it.
  This budget raises taxes. We shouldn't raise taxes during a recession 
on anyone that pays taxes. Tax increase will do several things. Small 
businesses that pay most of the taxes, they will have a tax increase. 
So to pay for these new taxes, they're going to have to cut jobs to pay 
for those taxes. It raises the utility rates on people that use energy. 
Now, that hurts those folks, the working poor, who have a fixed income, 
in essence, a tax increase on the poor. It cuts deductions for home 
mortgages and charitable contributions; that, in essence, hurts people 
who try to live in a home and contribute to charities. And the budget 
redistributes wealth.
  Abraham Lincoln said, ``You don't make the poor rich by making the 
rich poor and you don't make the weak strong by making the strong 
weak.''
  The budget is flawed with more government spending, more government 
control, and it raises taxes. Taxes will create less prosperity, not 
more prosperity.
  And that's just the way it is.

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