[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 17020]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                    DEFEAT THE IRRESPONSIBLE TAX CUT

  (Mr. SHERMAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, those who forget history are doomed to 
repeat it. I was in private practice as a CPA back in 1981 when this 
Congress passed the irresponsible ERTA tax bill. The result was high 
inflation, unemployment, high interest rates, and now we are about to 
do it all over again. This tax bill is ERTA on steroids.
  A few moderate Republicans could vote against this bill and stop it. 
Let me bring to them a few facts. One-third of the tax relief in this 
bill goes to the 90 percent of Americans who are middle class or of 
modest means. The next one-third goes to the next 9 percent toward the 
top. And one-third of the benefits goes to the top 1 percent of the 
income earners.
  This is not just an $800 billion tax cut for ten years. In the second 
10 years, it is over $3 trillion. So as the baby boomers retire, as 
Social Security is at risk, this bill is at its most irresponsible.
  I urge the defeat of this irresponsible tax cut.

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