    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book II)]
    [November 17, 2007]
    [Pages 1483-1485]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    November 17, 2007

        Good morning. In a few days, our Nation will celebrate Thanksgiving.
    Like millions of Americans, Members of Congress will travel home for the
    holiday. Unfortunately, as they get to work carving their turkeys,
    they're leaving a lot of unfinished work

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    back in Washington, DC. And unless they complete this work soon, middle
    class Americans will pay higher taxes and American troops will not
    receive the critical funding they need to fight and defeat our enemies.
        Many middle class taxpayers will face higher tax bills unless
    Congress acts on the Alternative Minimum Tax, or AMT. The AMT was
    designed to ensure that the wealthy paid their fair share of taxes. But
    when Congress passed the AMT decades ago, it was not indexed for
    inflation. As a result, the AMT's higher tax burden is creeping up on
    more and more middle class families.
        To deal with this problem, Congress has in recent years passed
    temporary legislation that prevented most middle class taxpayers from
    having to pay the AMT. But this year, Congress has yet to pass this
    legislation. A failure to do so would mean that 25 million Americans
    would be subject to the AMT, more than six times the number that faced
    the tax last year. If you are one of those 25 million, you would have to
    send an average of $2,000 more to the IRS next year. This is a huge tax
    increase that Americans do not expect and do not deserve.
        The longer Congress waits to fix this problem, the worse it will
    get. Last month, Treasury Secretary Paulson wrote a letter to Members of Congress warning that
    delaying action on legislation to fix the AMT could create confusion for
    millions of taxpayers and delay the delivery of about $75 billion worth
    of tax refund checks. Congress has ignored Secretary Paulson's warnings,
    and we are now beginning to see the consequences. On Friday, the tax
    forms for 2007 had to be sent to the Government Printer. And because of
    Congress's refusal to act, the IRS will be forced to send out tens of
    millions of tax forms that will almost certainly end up being wrong,
    wasting your money, delaying refunds, and making it even more
    complicated to figure out your taxes.
        It is clear that Congress's failure to adjust the AMT for inflation
    was a mistake. Unfortunately, Congress seems determined to compound this
    original mistake by making another one. Last week, the House passed a
    bill that provides relief from the AMT but raises other taxes. Congress
    should not use legislation that millions of Americans are counting on to
    protect them from higher taxes in one area as an excuse to raise taxes
    in other areas. I will veto any bill that raises taxes as a condition of
    fixing the AMT. Members of Congress must put political theater behind
    them, fix the AMT, and protect America's middle class from an unfair tax
    hike.
        Congress is also failing to meet its responsibilities to our troops.
    For months, Congress has delayed action on supplemental war funding
    because some in Congress want to make a political statement about the
    war. On Wednesday, the House passed a bill that once again has Congress
    directing our military commanders on how to conduct the war in Iraq as a
    condition for funding our troops. We do not need Members of Congress
    telling our commanders what to do. We need Congress listening to our
    military commanders and giving them what they need to win the war
    against extremists and radicals. Congress knows I'll veto this bill.
    During this time of war, our troops deserve the full support of
    Congress, and that means giving our troops the funding they need to
    successfully carry out their mission. I urge Congress to work quickly
    and send me a clean bill, so we can fulfill our obligation to our brave
    men and women in uniform.
         With both of these delays, congressional leaders are choosing
    political posturing over the priorities of the people. These choices
    have real-world consequences for our taxpayers and our troops. When
    Members of Congress return from their 2-week long Thanksgiving vacation,
    they will have only a few weeks left on the legislative calendar before
    they go home again for their Christmas break. I call on Congress to use
    the

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    time that is left to do what is right and pass AMT relief and fund our
    troops in combat.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 7:50 a.m. on November 16 in the
    Cabinet Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on November
    17. The transcript was made available by the Office of the Press
    Secretary on November 16, but was embargoed for release until the
    broadcast. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish
    language transcript of this address.