Mike Thompson: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of estate tax reform and in strong opposition…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of estate tax reform and in strong opposition to this wrongfully and inaccurately titled Death Tax Repeal Act. Whenever you hear people say ``death tax,'' know right away that they are not talking about public policy and that they are not talking about tax reform--they are talking about politics. There is no such thing as a death tax. You won't find those words anywhere at all in the Tax Code. It is partisan jargon. After you die, you don't have to pay taxes. You don't have to take out the garbage. You don't get called for jury duty anymore. When you are dead, you are dead. So there is no such thing as a death tax. Today, my Republican colleagues are pursuing a full repeal of the estate tax under the guise of helping family farms and small businesses. I wish this were the case, but the rhetoric is simply disingenuous when you look at the policy. I agree that the estate tax is a real issue for family farmers and for ranchers. The first bill I introduced when I came to Congress was a bill to reform the estate tax. Folks in my district, where farmland values have reached as high as $300,000 an acre, are often land rich and cash poor. {time} 0930 There are middle class people who work their land every day and pay taxes on the income they earn from that work. They are not people who the majority's bill is designed to help. Their full repeal is not the answer. It costs too much money.…”