Political Quotes

“With this amendment we are debating today, which is a critical amendment, we will bring the last significant aspect of our Federal Tax Code that is of particular concern to Idahoans, and I think really all Americans, and that is the marriage tax penalty. I ask myself one fundamental question before I make up my mind on any issue we deal with on the floor of the U.S. Senate. That is, Does this policy make sense for the American people? Let's apply this question to our current Federal Tax Code which, quite simply, penalizes a working couple for getting married. Should folks pay more tax because they are married? Absolutely not. The marriage tax penalty raises revenue for the government--no question about that. It raises revenue. But it is bad public policy. It most often raises taxes on lower and middle-income families who claim the standard deduction. Now, that is wrong. We must strengthen the bonds of family to strengthen the fabric of our society. If we believe in family, we believe in marriage. So why in the world do we have a public policy on the books that somehow creates a penalty for being married? That is totally counterproductive to our values of this society, of this Nation. Before 1969, marriages were treated by the Federal Tax Code like partnerships, allowing husbands and wives to split their income evenly. In 1969, however, this practice of income splitting was ended, and thus was created the marriage tax penalty.”