[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Page 18142]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                              O HAPPY DAY

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, this morning as I came into the Senate 
Chamber, the words to a song came to mind, ``O Happy Day.'' I almost 
feel like singing. This is a happy day. This is when the American 
people finally get to have a little bit more control over their lives, 
their own lives, based on decisions made in Chester County, PA, or in 
Pascagoula, MS. This is a day when we are going to be talking about the 
people being able to keep just a little bit more of their own hard-
earned money. Too often in the Senate we are arguing over details; we 
are trying to figure out how we from Washington can spend more of the 
people's money; we are thinking about how can we in Washington control 
more of people's lives.
  Well, finally we are going to get to have some fun; the people are 
going to get to have some fun. They can keep their own money to look 
after their own children without the Government telling them how to do 
it, to put them in the school of their choice, to deal with their 
health needs, or maybe even to have a little fun. O Happy Day. They get 
to be with their family on their own money.
  So I got up this morning feeling good because finally we are going to 
be doing something that I feel good about, the kind of thing that I 
came to Washington to do, and that was to try to control and reduce the 
size of Washington Government, to go with what Thomas Jefferson had in 
mind, and that was to put those decisions back closest to the people, 
with the people and the Government closest to the people. This is when 
we begin to do it. I think back during Jefferson's term after a war, a 
conflict that the country had been involved in. They terminated the 
death tax. Yes. Go back and look at history. The only time death taxes 
were put in place was during wars. When the wars were over, they were 
ended. But then mistakenly, because he was not in good health, 
President Wilson, after World War I, did not take it off and we have 
been stuck with it ever since.
  So this is a happy day, and I look forward to having a discussion 
about the specifics of tax relief for working Americans.

                          ____________________