[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 177 (Wednesday, November 1, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H8368]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TAX REFORM NEEDS TO BE NEGOTIATED OPENLY

  (Ms. KAPTUR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, let me begin by saying to my brother, Steve, 
back in Ohio: I am so very proud of you, your courage, your goodness, 
and your honor.
  Mr. Speaker, meanwhile, President Trump and the Republicans are doing 
everything to railroad tax breaks through this Congress to the top 1 
percent with no open hearings, with deals being cut in the Speaker's 
office. So I say: Whoa.
  It is worth taking a step back to talk about what a good tax plan 
contains. A good tax plan puts money back in the pockets of middle 
class working families and small business owners. A good tax plan spurs 
job creation right here in the U.S.A. Yet everything we have seen and 
heard from the Republicans does exactly the opposite.
  The goal should be to create more stability in our economy, not raise 
the deficit. We have got to stop businesses from shipping jobs overseas 
as companies hold their money offshore. They should bring it back home.
  Tax reform shouldn't be negotiated in secret. Why should lobbyists 
know more about the bill than Members of Congress? A tax bill shouldn't 
explode our deficit or threaten your 401(k) plan or hurt Medicare and 
Medicaid.
  It is time for Republicans to do their jobs, put forward a budget-
balancing tax plan that helps American families, not just billionaires 
and multimillionaires; and bring the plan forward in sunlight, not 
backroom dealings.

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