Steve Scalise: “I thank the gentleman from Michigan for yielding. What we're talking about here today, Mr. Speaker, is the difference…”

“I thank the gentleman from Michigan for yielding. What we're talking about here today, Mr. Speaker, is the difference between passing a tax policy that would only last 2 months or passing a tax policy that lasts the entire year. During this next week and a half, while families are sitting at home doing their budget for next year, they're going to be making their budget for the entire year 2012, not for just 2 months. And yet what the Senate sent over is a plan that only kicks the can down road, and we'd be right back here again having this same debate in 2 months. People are sick and tired of this kind of absurd action from Congress. If you look at early civics courses, anybody that takes their first civics course knows that when there's a difference between the House and the Senate--as there is here--then the two sides appoint conferees, they get together and they work out those differences. That's what the legislative process is about. And clearly we have a difference. We think the policy should be for an entire year, as even the President has said, and the Senate sent us over a 2-month patch that doesn't even fix the problem. In fact, outside groups like the National Federation of Independent Businesses said this would hurt small businesses. And yet what do we get from the other side? Minority Leader Pelosi, Mr. Speaker, said she will not appoint any House Democrats to participate in the negotiations. She just said this last night.…”