[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 191 (Tuesday, December 13, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H8745]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    TIME FOR CHANGE ON TAX EXTENDER

  (Ms. EDWARDS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. EDWARDS. Mr. Speaker, Joyce Timmons from Suitland, Maryland, 
called my office to say that the extra money in her paycheck from the 
soon-to-expire payroll tax cut is important to her and her family.
  Joyce and 160 million workers are wondering why my Republican 
colleagues are now for raising taxes on working people before they were 
against raising taxes. That's right. The Republicans oppose extending 
the payroll tax cut except by blackmail.
  By extending the tax cut, working people like Joyce Timmons would 
receive, on average, a thousand dollars next year. It's not a $10,000 
bet; it's real money in the economy.
  Republicans go out of their way to block job creation and protect tax 
cuts for the 1 percenters, but they want to raise taxes for the 99 
percenters. And they won't stop there.
  More than a million Americans have been out of work for a really long 
time, including 25,000 Marylanders; yet Republicans want to be the 
grinch who stole Christmas by denying an unemployment check so that 
people who want to work but can't find work can buy groceries, pay rent 
and utilities, and tide their families over.
  Republicans want to go home for the holidays, but they want working 
people to pay more in taxes next year and lose out on an unemployment 
check.
  The Grinch became a good guy; Scrooge found a heart; even Mr. Potter 
changed his tune. It's time for Republicans to change too.

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