[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 171 (Monday, December 31, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8584-S8586]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
JOB PROTECTION AND RECESSION PREVENTION ACT OF 2012
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now
proceed to the consideration of H.R. 8; that the substitute amendment,
the text of which is at the desk, be agreed to; that there be 10
minutes of debate equally divided between the two leaders prior to a
vote on passage of the bill, as amended; that there be no other
amendments in order prior to the vote; that there be no points of order
in order to the substitute amendment or the bill; finally, that the
vote on passage be subject to a 60-vote affirmative vote threshold.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, very quickly, we have worked really hard
this week. We Senators had to be here and are happy to be here, but
there are four individuals who didn't have to work this week, but they
volunteered to do so. These four pages have kept this place operating
by helping floor staff and us. They could be home with their families
and friends enjoying the holiday. Instead, they are here.
We have 18-year-old Jarrod Nagurka, of Arlington. He gave up his
winter break to be here; Twenty-two-year-old Priscilla Pelli of
Washington, DC, is a staff assistant in my office. She has devoted her
time here. Twenty-two-year-old Erin Shields of Takoma Park, MD, is an
intern in my office. And 16-year-old Gwendilyn Liu of Kaneohe, HI, the
only remaining current page, skipped her winter vacation to help here.
I want the record to reflect our deep appreciation for them, and I wish
them the very best in their future endeavors.
Mr. President, working through the night and throughout today, we
have reached an agreement with Senator McConnell to avert tax increases
on middle-class Americans.
I have said all along that our most important priority was to protect
middle-class families. This legislation does that. Middle-class
families will wake up today to the assurance that their taxes won't go
up $2,200 each. They will have the certainty to plan how they will pay
for groceries, rent, and car payments all during next year. The
legislation also protects 2 million Americans who have lost their jobs
during the great recession from losing their unemployment insurance.
I am disappointed that we weren't able to make the grand bargain that
we tried to do for so long, but we tried. If we do nothing, the threat
of a recession is very real. And passing this agreement does not mean
the negotiations halt--far from it. We can all agree there is more work
to be done. I thank everybody for their patience today--and they have
had a lot of patience.
I also thank my friend the Republican leader, Senator McConnell, for
his hard work to reach this bipartisan agreement. It has been difficult
and very hard. As we have said before, Senator McConnell and I out here
do a lot of talking to each other; we kind of go over everybody's head.
But he and I know that when the talk is done out here, we work hard to
try to help this country. So he is my friend, and I appreciate very,
very much the work he has done.
For example, this bill cuts $4 billion in fiscal year 2013 and $8
billion in fiscal year 2014. These are real cuts that are in this bill.
I hope the new year will bring a new willingness on the part of the
House Republicans to join Democrats in the difficult but rewarding work
of governing. The Speaker has said all along that he was waiting for
the Senate to act. The Senate soon will act. Now, I hope for America
that the Speaker will allow the full House of Representatives to vote
on this bipartisan legislation.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Republican leader.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I wish to thank my good friend the
majority leader for his kind words and thank everyone for their
patience and their counsel throughout this process.
I also thank the Vice President for recognizing the importance of
preventing this tax hike on the American
[[Page S8585]]
people and stepping up to play a crucial role in getting us there. It
shouldn't have taken us this long to come to an agreement and this
shouldn't be the model for how we do things around here, but I
appreciate the Vice President's willingness to get this done for the
country.
I know I can speak for my entire conference when I say we don't think
taxes should be going up on anyone, but we all knew that if we did
nothing, they would be going up on everyone today. We weren't going to
let that happen. Each of us could spend the rest of the week discussing
what a perfect solution would have looked like, but the end result
would have been the largest tax increase in American history.
The President wanted tax increases, but thanks to this imperfect
agreement, 99 percent of my constituents will not be hit by those
hikes. So it took an imperfect solution to prevent our constituents
from very real financial pain. But, in my view, it was worth the
effort.
As I said, this shouldn't be the model for how we do things around
here, but I think we can say we have done some good for the country. We
have done some good for this country. We have taken care of the revenue
side of this debate, and now it is time to get serious about reducing
Washington's out-of-control spending. That is a debate the American
people want. It is the debate we will have next, and it is the debate
Republicans are ready for.
Mr. REED. Mr. President, I want to address the bill before us
tonight. Despite the best efforts of Senate Democrats to strike a
balanced and fair compromise--to avert tax hikes on Americans making
less than a quarter of a million dollars, to avert the expiration of
unemployment insurance, to avert the damaging automatic spending
reductions--we instead have before us a package that is at best a half-
measure. This is not how we should govern.
However, the bill before us is better than the alternative facing
millions of Americans. If we do not act, taxes for the middle-class
will rise tomorrow, support for unemployed workers will lapse, Rhode
Islanders will be hurt, and our economic recovery could suffer another
Republican induced economic setback.
Unless this bill is signed into law, starting January first, taxes
rise on every American and hundreds of thousands middle-income Rhode
Island families will see their taxes increase by an estimated $2,200 in
2013. Rhode Islanders numbering 37,000 would lose a tuition tax credit
to help them pay for college and 103,000 Rhode Island families raising
children would see an average tax increase of $1,000 because they would
no longer qualify for the Child Tax Credit. The economy is tough enough
for most Rhode Islanders, and they shouldn't be asked to absorb a hit
like that due to the stubbornness of the other side of the aisle.
This bill will also continue unemployment insurance for 2.1 million
Americans and almost 9,000 Rhode Islanders. Without a continuation of
unemployment insurance, millions of Americans actively seeking work
will suffer a debilitating economic blow. People will lose their homes
and be unable to put food on the table, as they lose one of the few
lifelines they and their families have as they look for work in a tough
economy. Neighborhood businesses would have taken a hit as well. An
estimated $48 billion in economic activity will be sapped from our
recovery and one of our most effective counter-cyclical economic
policies would have been lost.
It is a sad truth, but the middle-class tax cuts and unemployment
insurance were being held hostage by my Republican colleagues in order
to secure even more generous tax cuts for the wealthy. So at least with
the permanent extension of tax cuts for the middle-class and a one-year
continuation of unemployment, that immediate threat is gone.
However, it is outrageous that this threat has been taken this far
and that my Republican colleagues continue to demand a perpetuation of
an unfair tax code that is tilted towards the wealthiest.
So I remain committed to reforming the tax system so it is fair for
all Americans. I remain committed to ending egregious loopholes that
result in absurd and unfair results, like a private equity partner
paying a lower tax rate than a janitor.
I do want to stress that, despite Republican demands for big cuts in
the social safety net, this bill protects Social Security, Medicare,
and Medicaid beneficiaries. Such beneficiary cuts would have made this
package even more unbalanced and unfair. Unfortunately, it appears that
Republicans are already planning to hold the debt ceiling hostage in
order to cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Today they will
insist on additional tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans,
especially estate tax cuts, but then demand that we cut Social
Security, Medicare, and Medicaid to cover these and other debts. I will
work to prevent such callous efforts.
I am deeply disappointed by the package before us today. I believe
the White House should have stood firm on reducing the deficit by
nearly $1 trillion and let income tax rates for those making over a
quarter of a million dollars revert to Clinton-era levels. I am
disappointed with Republican intransigence and the prospect of once
again being on the brink of a manufactured economic catastrophe in
order to secure tax preferences for millionaires and billionaires and
attempting to pay for them by cutting Social Security or programs that
benefit middle-income Americans.
In the coming weeks, I hope Republicans will drop their attempts to
cut the deficit on the backs of the middle-class and seniors, and
instead work with us to craft a fair and balanced compromise that
strengthens, not endangers, our economic recovery.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
THE PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority leader.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, the vote will start immediately, and people
should get here as quickly as they can.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Under the previous order, amendment No.
3448 is agreed to.
The text of the amendment is printed in today's Record under (``Text
of amendments.'')
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The question is on the engrossment of the
amendment and third reading of the bill.
The amendment was ordered to be engrossed and the bill to be read a
third time.
The bill was read the third time.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Is there a sufficient second? There
appears to be a sufficient second.
The bill having been read the third time, the question is, Shall the
bill pass.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr.
Lautenberg) is necessarily absent.
Mr. KYL. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator
from South Carolina (Mr. DeMint) and the Senator from Illinois (Mr.
Kirk).
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Are there any other Senators in the
Chamber desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 89, nays 8, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 251 Leg.]
YEAS--89
Akaka
Alexander
Ayotte
Barrasso
Baucus
Begich
Bingaman
Blumenthal
Blunt
Boozman
Boxer
Brown (MA)
Brown (OH)
Burr
Cantwell
Cardin
Casey
Chambliss
Coats
Coburn
Cochran
Collins
Conrad
Coons
Corker
Cornyn
Crapo
Durbin
Enzi
Feinstein
Franken
Gillibrand
Graham
Hagan
Hatch
Heller
Hoeven
Hutchison
Inhofe
Isakson
Johanns
Johnson (SD)
Johnson (WI)
Kerry
Klobuchar
Kohl
Kyl
Landrieu
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
Lugar
Manchin
McCain
McCaskill
McConnell
Menendez
Merkley
Mikulski
Moran
Murkowski
Murray
Nelson (NE)
Nelson (FL)
Portman
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Risch
Roberts
Rockefeller
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Sessions
Shaheen
Snowe
Stabenow
Tester
Thune
Toomey
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Vitter
Warner
Webb
Whitehouse
Wicker
Wyden
NAYS--8
Bennet
Carper
Grassley
Harkin
Lee
Paul
Rubio
Shelby
NOT VOTING--3
DeMint
Kirk
Lautenberg
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. A 60-vote threshold having been achieved,
the bill, as amended, is passed.
[[Page S8586]]
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Manchin). The majority leader.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, we don't expect any more votes today, no
more votes today. We want to wait and see what the House does on Sandy,
and I think whatever we do on Sandy will have to be done by unanimous
consent anyway, so I wouldn't expect any votes until we come back here
and reconvene on January 3, the day after tomorrow.
Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the title
amendment with respect to H.R. 8, which is at the desk, be agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment (No. 3450) was agreed to, as follows:
Amended the title so as to read:
An Act entitled the ``American Taxpayer Relief Act of
2012''.
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