Pete Domenici: “I want to repeat that I am firmly convinced that, for some reason or another, the other side is not frightened by the…”

“I want to repeat that I am firmly convinced that, for some reason or another, the other side is not frightened by the idea of spending the surplus but somehow they are very frightened about giving some of it back to the citizens of the United States. I know Senator Conrad has a tax plan also. He is on the Finance Committee. But I submit, if we were to adopt his amendment, any realistic change in the marriage tax penalty over the next 5 years to make it more fair, so millions of newlyweds will not come into April finding out they are paying an average of $1,400 a year more in taxes because they are married than they would if they were single, filing separately--we think that will cost, over 5 years, somewhere between $60 billion and $65 billion. There is some education tax relief that has passed with rather substantial margins. That is about $8 billion. There is health care tax relief that is about $13 billion. That leaves small business provisions for which both sides have voted.…”