On the recordApril 12, 2016
it is springtime in Missouri. Whether it is in our State that joins the Presiding Officer's State of Oklahoma or in Iowa, we are seeing trees begin to bloom. It was great to be home the 2 weeks we were home and again last weekend and see the flowering trees sort of move from north to south and, I guess, south to north. It is one of my favorite times of the year, as it is for a lot of people. Particularly during the 2 weeks we were home, we would not see the blooms of the Dogwoods, and then a couple of days later we would see them farther north in the State than we had seen them before. People like the spring. They like the great weather, they like to get out and do things with their family--only to be reminded sometimes just how fickle the spring weather is. One thing a lot of people--including most of us--dread at this time of year, however, is that spring comes at about the same time that they have to file their taxes. That date comes this week, and if the weather is not predictable, the increasing reach of the Tax Code should be predictable and is predictable. Ronald Reagan said that Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, and our friends on the other side believe every day is April the 15th. We are having the income come in now and seeing what happens with it. It is the time of year we ought to look at what is happening with the hard-earned dollars American families work for.…
