C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger: “I am here because we need to get past the idea of Democrats versus Republicans and cut to the chase. I do not have to…”

“I am here because we need to get past the idea of Democrats versus Republicans and cut to the chase. I do not have to convince anyone here today that we need a child tax credit. That is not the battle. The battle is whose version of a child tax credit this Congress will send to the President for signature. And I am here to argue that the Senate version simply makes more sense. We are facing a troubled economy, rising unemployment numbers and an exploding deficit caused by tax cuts that is just not working. We are fighting a war on terrorism, a war in Afghanistan, and a war in Iraq. We have our servicemen and -women deployed throughout the world. One thing we need right now is a child tax credit for all families, including military and veteran families, including the families of manufacturing workers, farmers, teachers, steelworkers and restaurant workers. We need to include families who have not benefited from the tax cut plan because they did not get dividend or capital gains relief from this administration's tax cut, families who need this child tax credit now to pay for housing, clothing, food and health care.”