Pete Stark: “Mr. Speaker, this bill is an obscene hoax on the American people, and it is not about taxes. It is about the Republican…”

“Mr. Speaker, this bill is an obscene hoax on the American people, and it is not about taxes. It is about the Republican plan to fundamentally cripple the ability of government to do its job. It is about sacrificing our Nation's priorities on the altar of tax breaks to the wealthiest among us. The Republican leaders would like nothing more than to hamstring our Federal Government's ability to function. They know it and we know it. They praise the President's leadership, and on that note I will join them. The President's leadership led to one of the most outstanding acts in the political scene of this year and perhaps this century when the gentleman from Vermont decided to switch parties. In his statement he said 'that in the past, without the Presidency the various wings of the Republican Party and Congress have had some freedom to argue and influence and ultimately to shape the party's agenda. The election of President Bush changed that dramatically.' We do not live in a parliamentary system, but it is only natural to expect that people like myself, who have been honored with positions of leadership, will largely support the President's agenda and yet, more and more I find I cannot.”