Trent Lott: “the vote we're about to take will be one of the most important any of us will ever cast. The decision before us is as…”

“the vote we're about to take will be one of the most important any of us will ever cast. The decision before us is as important as our families and as large as the American future. If this is not an historic moment, then it is as close to it as most of us will ever come. Several weeks ago, when we first reached the broad outlines of an agreement with the President, I called it a victory, not for a party or a person, but for the American people. We can reaffirm that today. We listened to the American people. We knew what they wanted us to do. And somehow, by the grace of God and the endurance of Pete Domenici and Bill Roth, we did it. We set out to lower the tax burden on the American people. We did so. In this bill, more than 75 percent of the tax breaks go to people with incomes under $75,000. We set out to make the Tax Code family-friendly. We did so. After far too many years of talking about a tax credit for children, we're finally approving one. In addition, we're making it easier for families to save for the costs of education. On top of that, we're expanding the availability of IRA's to virtually all homemakers in the country. And we're easing the death tax on family farms and businesses. This bill rides in tandem with the Balanced Budget Act the Senate passed 2 days ago. That marks a turning point in the way Congress deals with the entitlement programs that have driven our country to the depths of indebtedness.”