Mark Udall: “I am very reluctant to vote for this bill--but I will. I am reluctant because this is not the best time for this bill…”

“I am very reluctant to vote for this bill--but I will. I am reluctant because this is not the best time for this bill, and this is not the best bill for the job. It's not the right time because under the Budget Act, a tax bill like this--or a spending bill, for that matter--should not be considered at all until after Congress has passed an overall budget resolution to establish priorities among revenue measures and appropriations bills. That is the rule, because that is the prudent way to set our fiscal policy. I agree with the Concord Coalition that we should follow that rule, which is why I voted against the Republican leadership's motion to waive that rule so this bill could be taken up today. And this is not the best bill for the job because in some areas it does too little, and in others it does too much. It does too little because it does not adjust the Alternative Minimum Tax. That means it leaves many middle-income families unprotected from having most of the promised benefits of the bill taken away. The Democratic substitute would have adjusted the Alternative Minimum Tax, which is one of the reasons I voted for that better bill. The Republican leadership's bill does too much in another area. Because it is not carefully targeted, it does not just apply to people who pay a penalty because they are married.”