Political Quotes

“I came to the floor yesterday to speak on the devastating impact the Republican tax plan would have on working families in my home State of Illinois and other States across the Nation. It is no secret that the Republican plan would finance massive tax cuts for the wealthiest people in America. They just can't help themselves. Every time they look at the Tax Code, they think there has to be a way to help the wealthiest people in our country. They usually look at the estate tax, which is paid for by 1 out of every 1,000 Americans, and say: We have just got to spare these poor people who have a net worth of over $11 million from paying any taxes to the government. We have to spare them from paying this government for the benefit that this great Nation has brought to them and their families and businesses. That is where they start. Then they do the alternative minimum tax, which is a tax that was created so that if your accountants and bookkeepers and lawyers are the sharpest on Earth and ended up finding that you had no tax liability, you still paid a fair share for sustaining this great Nation that you call home. They want to get rid of that, too, or at least dramatically modify it. They start off with the premise of making these tax cuts for the wealthiest people in America the beginning point of tax reform, these giveaways to people who are not even asking for them. They can't help themselves. They always start there, and the American people know it.…”