[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 158 (Tuesday, September 25, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S6290]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                               Tax Reform

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, America has always been a place of economic 
promise. Millions of people have come to this country in search of a 
better life for themselves and an even better life for their children, 
but in recent years this dream had started to dim.
  Under the Obama administration, our economy stagnated. Too many 
American families struggled. Worse, some economists were predicting 
that weak economic growth would be the new normal. Republicans disagree 
with that assessment. We didn't think the United States was doomed to a 
future of weak growth and diminished opportunity. We knew American 
workers and American businesses were as driven, creative, and 
innovative as ever. We also knew they were facing a lot of obstacles, 
including burdensome regulations and an outdated tax code that acted as 
a drag on economic growth. So instead of giving up on the economy, we 
decided we were going to get the economy going again by removing 
obstacles to economic growth and job creation.
  Over the past 21 months, that is exactly what we have done. We have 
removed burdensome regulations, and last December we passed a historic 
and comprehensive reform of our Tax Code.
  The Tax Code isn't necessarily the first thing people think of when 
they think of economic growth, but in actual fact, the Tax Code has a 
huge effect on our economy.
  A small business owner facing a huge tax bill is highly unlikely to 
be able to expand her business or hire a new employee. In fact, if her 
tax burden is heavy enough, she may not even be able to keep her 
business open. Similarly, a large business is going to find it pretty 
hard to create jobs or improve benefits for employees if it is 
struggling to stay competitive against foreign businesses that are 
paying much less in taxes.
  Prior to the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, our Tax Code was 
not helping our economy. It was doing the opposite, and so we took 
action. We lowered tax rates across the board for owners of small and 
medium-sized businesses, farms, and ranches. We lowered our Nation's 
massive corporate tax rate, which up until January 1, was the highest 
corporate tax rate in the developed world. We expanded business owners' 
ability to recover the cost of investments they make in their 
businesses, which frees up cash they can reinvest in their operations 
and their workers. We brought the U.S. international tax system into 
the 21st century so American businesses are not operating at a 
disadvantage next to their foreign competitors.
  Now we are seeing the results. Our economy is thriving. The economy 
grew at a vigorous 4.2-percent pace in the second quarter of 2018. 
Since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed into law less than a year 
ago, 1.7 million jobs have been created. U.S. job openings have hit a 
record high of 6.94 million. In fact, the number of job openings has 
exceeded the number of unemployed for 5 straight months. Think about 
that. The number of job openings has exceeded the number of people who 
are looking for jobs for the past 5 months.
  Wages are rising at the fastest rate since 2009. Middle-class income 
hit its highest level ever last year--ever--and the poverty rate 
dropped to its lowest level since 2006. Small business optimism 
shattered its previous record to reach a new high in August. I could go 
on.
  So what does this all mean? It means that if you need a job, there 
are more jobs available and jobs with good benefits. It means there are 
more opportunities for workers to advance and build rewarding and 
secure careers. It means fewer families are having to live paycheck to 
paycheck and that more families have money available to plan for the 
future, such as for their kids' college or for their retirement. It 
means small business owners can think about expanding their businesses 
and hiring new workers instead of wondering how they are going to make 
ends meet.
  When the American people elected us to the majority almost 2 years 
ago, we had one priority, and that was making life better for American 
families. I am very proud we are succeeding, but we are certainly not 
stopping here. We are going to continue working to expand opportunity 
for Americans even further. We are going to continue to build on the 
work we have done on other priorities, from equipping our military and 
supporting our veterans to fighting the opioid crisis.