Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, this year Americans worked almost 100 days, from January 1 to April 9, to pay taxes at the Federal, State, and local levels, which is more than one-fourth of their income. I believe that it is totally unacceptable to require already stressed families to give up such a high share of their income while bloated Federal bureaucracy continues to expand during a severe recession. To reduce this burden, Congress should now focus on reforming the current complicated tax structure which makes it so much more difficult for families and small business owners to experience economic recovery. As I called for in my last speech on tax reform, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin), needs to schedule hearings on tax reform simplicity as soon as possible. The Fair Tax proposal is one of those ideas that I believe the committee must consider. The Fair Tax is definitely a serious proposal that is backed by many Americans, including so many constituents of my congressional district, and it deserves our full consideration. The Fair Tax would replace all Federal income and payroll-based taxes with a national retail sales tax and includes a rebate to ensure that no American below the poverty level pays Federal taxes. If enacted, the Fair Tax proposal would provide a dollar-for-dollar Federal revenue neutrality. According to the proposal's advocates, the Fair Tax would reform the current tax code.…”