[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 58 (Wednesday, April 11, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S2048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               TAX REFORM

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on another matter, this week we have 
been discussing the stark difference between the Obama administration's 
agenda and the policies that President Trump and this Republican 
Congress have implemented.
  During the Obama years, the overwhelming majority of all the limited 
new growth and new jobs went to the biggest and richest urban areas. 
Times were good if you happened to live in New York, San Francisco, or 
a few other places, but if you were one of the millions of Americans in 
our Nation's towns, smaller cities, suburbs, or rural areas, they were 
not so good. According to one estimate, between 2010 and 2016, 73 
percent of all the employment gains in the country went to metro areas 
with more than 1 million residents. Practically everywhere else, 
Americans either treaded water or started sinking.
  This President and this Republican Congress were sent here to put 
this right, and because the American people gave us a chance to do so, 
they now have leaders in Washington who focus on cutting taxes instead 
of raising them, rolling back overregulation instead of piling on more 
suffocating rules, and looking out for the best interests of all 
workers and job creators, not just those in our biggest and wealthiest 
cities.
  The early results from our inclusive opportunity agenda are clear. 
After years of stagnation, we are beginning to see signs that rural 
America turned a corner in 2017. One analysis found that last year, 
rural areas outpaced the rest of the country in job creation, relative 
to the share of the economy they started out with. There is still much, 
much more to do, but these early promising signs add up to hundreds of 
thousands of new jobs. That is a sight for sore eyes in Kentucky, West 
Virginia, Montana, Maine, and so many other States.
  What about our smaller cities? I recently heard from my friend 
Senator Toomey that, because of this historic tax reform we passed last 
year, Carpenter Technology in Reading, PA, will invest $100 million in 
expanded manufacturing capabilities--$100 million in our economy and 
American workers because of tax reform. For this American manufacturer, 
founded in 1889, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act means a new hot rolling mill 
to produce the special alloys for aerospace and consumer electronics. 
They are also investing in 3D printing. This is what happens when 
manufacturers have the breathing room to bet on the U.S. economy and on 
their American workforce. Breathing room is exactly what our policy is 
giving them. Carpenter already employs more than 3,000 Pennsylvanians, 
and with this kind of major capital investment, I expect they will be 
competing for future generations of skilled workers as well.
  Pennsylvania should be proud of Senator Toomey. He is one of the 
leaders who have helped lead the charge for tax reform. It is a shame 
his colleague, the senior Senator for Pennsylvania, put party politics 
ahead of workers and taxpayers and voted to block tax reform right from 
the beginning.
  Fortunately, my Democratic colleagues failed to block tax reform from 
taking place, even though many now want to repeal the law that has led 
to new jobs, higher wages, and increased opportunities all across our 
country.
  Stories like these are just the first fruits of tax reform, 
regulatory reform, and all the other ways this Republican Congress is 
fighting for every American worker, job creator, and middle-class 
family.

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