[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 10]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 13381]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


APPOINTMENT OF CONFEREES ON H.R. 2, JOBS AND GROWTH RECONCILIATION TAX 
                              ACT OF 2003

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 22, 2003

  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to this 
conference report. This tax cut is a tragedy. It does not create jobs, 
it does not grow the economy, and the only thing it grows is the 
deficit.

  What we see here today is the unraveling of fiscal responsibility. It 
began in the White House with the President's reckless, irresponsible 
proposal, and it continues with the Republicans in the Congress. By 
promoting his unnecessary, unfair, and fiscally unsound tax cut, 
President Bush has created a tax cutting frenzy among Congressional 
Republicans.

  The result is this conference report--and a bill to put our children 
$1 trillion in debt. That is not leadership. I have asked many times, 
where have all the Republican deficit hawks gone? They are an 
endangered species. Democrats still believe in fiscal responsibility, 
and we believe that raiding Social Security and saddling our children 
and grandchildren with enormous debt is wrong. If the Republicans had 
wanted to have a proposal that would grow the economy, focus on the 
middle class, create jobs and be fiscally sound, they could have done 
so. They chose not to.

  The Democratic plan, which we were not allowed to vote on, creates 1 
million new jobs this year without adding one penny to the deficit. It 
puts money in the hands of people who need it and will spend it, 
injecting demand into the economy and creating jobs this year. But 
instead, Republicans have chosen to add $1 trillion in debt--
shortchanging education, homeland security, healthcare and other vital 
needs. The list of missed opportunities goes on and on. That is not 
leadership.
  Investing in education--early childhood education, K through 12, 
higher education, postgraduate education, lifetime learning--does more 
to grow the economy than any tax cut you can name. But to accommodate 
tax breaks for those who need it least, the Republican budget cuts $168 
billion from domestic programs, including education, over the next 
decade. Students are asked to sacrifice, seniors are asked to 
sacrifice, first responders are asked to sacrifice, middle class 
families are asked to sacrifice--all so that the average millionaire 
can get a tax cut of $93,500. That is not leadership.
  And, in order to squeeze more tax breaks for the wealthy into this 
bill, Republicans have included provisions that end the few middle-
class tax cuts they once supported. Both the child tax credit and 
elimination of the marriage penalty end in 2005--leaving middle-class 
Americans with a tax increase in 2006. A future Congress will be forced 
to either increase taxes or add billions to our spiraling debt just as 
the Baby Boomers begin retiring. The middle class is asked to subsidize 
the wealthy. That is not right. That is not leadership.
  These gimmicks hide the true cost of this tax cut, and they are not 
fair to middle-class Americans. The great irony of all this is that if 
all the Republicans want to do is to put money in the pockets of 
wealthy people, then nothing works better than sound, fiscally 
responsible policies. Wealthy Americans did better in the 1990's than 
at any other time. But Republicans have failed to build upon the 
economic successes of the Clinton Administration. Their economic record 
is a dismal failure.
  The first two years of the Bush Administration have seen a loss of 
2.8 million jobs--the worst record of job creation of any President 
since World War II. No job creation whatsoever--job loss. No modern 
President has had a record of that kind. And since President Bush took 
office, we have seen a surplus of $5.6 trillion turn into a deficit of 
over $2 trillion--and growing. A swing of $7.6 trillion. So now what do 
they want to do? Repeat the same economic policies that got us into 
this hole to begin with, digging the hole even deeper. That is not 
leadership.
  President Bush and Republicans in Congress never miss an opportunity 
to do what is right for average Americans. Tonight, instead of 
investing in our children, we are indebting them. We are mortgaging 
their futures for a tax break that benefits those who need it least, 
the wealthiest in our country. And we are doing so at the expense of 
our opportunity to invest further in the education of our children. 
Vote no on the conference report. Vote no on fiscal irresponsibility. 
Vote no on a reckless plan that will take our country in the wrong 
direction.

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