[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16956]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              FISCAL CLIFF

  (Mr. CICILLINE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, our country faces a critical financial 
deadline in just 19 days. While Democrats are offering solutions to 
raise revenue and cut government spending, the House Republican 
leadership still refuses to take action on something we all agree on--
extending middle class tax cuts.
  We need to give middle class families in my home State of Rhode 
Island and across our Nation the certainty that they will not see a tax 
increase at a time when they can least afford it. I've heard from 
hundreds of Rhode Islanders who want to know why we don't have a deal 
already. I've heard from seniors who want us to protect Social 
Security, working parents who want us to extend tax cuts for the middle 
class, and those still struggling to find work who rely on unemployment 
insurance to make ends meet.
  It's time for the Republican leadership to work across the aisle to 
reach a deal that strengthens the middle class and responsibly 
addresses our debt.

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