Political Quotes

“like my colleague from Illinois, I, too, have families that I represent. The gentleman spoke about a family who got a tax credit. I would like to talk about Renita Jackson-Keys, who works as a cook for the Chicago public schools. She earned $14,144 in 2002, raising four children from the ages of 18, 15, 12, and 4, separated from her husband, but not divorced yet. She receives no child support. If the child tax credit provision expansion had included families like hers, she would have received an increase of about $182, but she was not a priority. Renita said she could have used a $182 increase to help pay for her $540 monthly mortgage. In the final hour, the demand for a large dividend tax and more corporate welfare pushed away the child credit from low-income workers like Renita and her children. Renita does not just work as a way to pass the time of her day while she waits for her dividend check; she works because that is a value that we hold up in America. Her four children see her go to work every day. Work defines who we are as Americans.”