[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 81 (Thursday, May 17, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S2736]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               TAX REFORM

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on another matter, with Republican 
policies shaking the regulatory rust off of the U.S. economy, American 
job creators, entrepreneurs, and working families have been thinking 
big again.
  For 8 years, Democrats pushed a one-size-fits-all agenda that heaped 
outsized benefits on the largest cities and left the rest of the 
country struggling to catch up. Now Main Street businesses across 
America feel the wind is at their backs. So they are expanding their 
operations, buying more equipment, and hiring new workers.
  For too long, taxpayers grappled with an outdated Federal Tax Code 
that seemed to keep more of their hard-earned income every year. Now, 
thanks to Republican tax reform, working families are seeing paychecks 
grow, special bonuses hit their bank accounts, and will send thousands 
of dollars less to the IRS next year.
  Now that Congress and the President have put a stop to the last 
administration's rampant, top-down Federal rulemaking, U.S. 
manufacturing is churning back to life as well. The new economic 
climate that is taking hold across the country has producers feeling 
more confident about planting deeper roots right here in the United 
States--new capital investment, new factories, new American jobs.
  Novelis, a leading producer of rolled and recycled aluminum, broke 
ground just this week on a new factory in Guthrie, KY. The company is 
choosing the Commonwealth in which to build the 400,000-square-foot 
facility and create at least 125 new jobs, and they are not keeping any 
secrets about what is helping them make this investment. Here is a 
quote: ``A favorable economic environment,'' including ``the 
significant positive impact of tax reform in the U.S., reinforces 
Novelis' decision to expand at this time.''
  This is not just a Kentucky phenomenon. According to new survey data 
from the National Association of Manufacturers, more than 93 percent of 
U.S. manufacturing firms have a positive outlook. Already, 77 percent 
of manufacturers are reporting hiring new workers, and 86 percent say 
they are investing in plants and equipment.
  Many American communities revolve around these manufacturing 
facilities. Sadly, during the Obama years, they were among the most 
likely to be left behind by the so-called ``recovery,'' but now that is 
changing. Today, manufacturing wages are growing at their fastest pace 
in 17 years. These are just a few signs of our Nation's economic 
comeback under Republicans' pro-growth, pro-opportunity agenda.
  Remember, not one of our Democratic colleagues voted with us to set 
this train in motion--not one. They voted against cutting redtape for 
American manufacturers. They voted against the tax reforms that are 
growing paychecks and helping to create new jobs. They voted against 
the newly lowered utility rates that benefit both families and 
employers.
  My Democratic colleagues like to talk about supporting the middle 
class. These days, it is looking more and more like that is all it is--
just talk. Yet, while they occupy themselves with partisan politics, 
Republicans will keep on clearing the tracks and letting the American 
economy roll on ahead.

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