Richard B. Nugent: “I want to thank my good friend and fellow Rules Committee member Tim Scott for allowing me to speak on this very…”

“I want to thank my good friend and fellow Rules Committee member Tim Scott for allowing me to speak on this very important issue. This rule does something that is decades overdue. It puts the Nation on a path to comprehensive tax reform. Achieving a fairer, simpler Tax Code isn't an easy goal, which is why we are considering today and tomorrow a multi-step process. First, we need to extend the current tax rate. This extension gives us a bridge, the time we need, to dig into the Tax Code and find a way to make it work for all Americans, not just some. Perhaps even more importantly, it stops the largest tax hike in history. It's worth repeating: the largest tax hike in history. Madam Speaker, this tax increase would threaten more than 700,000 American jobs, and for those folks lucky enough not to lose their jobs, it could very well lead to lower wages for them. If we don't act, the Democrats' tax increase will hit 53 percent--more than half--of all American small business income. When I brought these small businesses up at the Rules Committee last night, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle responded to me and my questions by coming back with statistics, things that don't really matter much to anybody. Yet, when I talked about small businesses in my district--those folks making over $200,000 who are going to be impacted by this increase on taxes--it related to actual jobs, what they can create and what they may have to cut back on.…”