The Public Record
Max Baucus is a former U.S. Senator from Montana, serving from 1978 to 2014. A member of the Democratic Party, Baucus was known for his work on health care reform and tax policy. He played a significant role in the passage of the Affordable Care Act and was a key advocate for various economic initiatives during his tenure. Baucus also served as the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, where he influenced legislation related to taxation and trade. After leaving the Senate, he was appointed as the U.S. Ambassador to China, where he focused on strengthening U.S.-China relations.
Isn't it true that under this basic law and also this amendment, benefits only accrue prospectively; that is, no benefits accrue retroactively? That is, the only retroactive application is as to whether somebody qualifies, but the actual…
first, I thank, again, my good friends from Minnesota and Oregon, Senators Coleman and Wyden, for their very strong work on this amendment. I support this very strongly for a special reason. I have the privilege of representing the State…
the battle to enact this bill has certainly--thankfully--not been compared to a war. But I do believe we can now say this bill is at least what Prime Minister Winston Churchill is reputed to have said after the British victory at El…
Doesn't the Senator agree that the new jobs in the future are going to have to be, for want of a better expression, smarter jobs; that is, even someone who repairs automobiles today has to understand computers? You do not just have a…
This amendment is the right thing to do. And now is the right time to do it. The JOBS bill is about creating jobs and about keeping existing jobs in America. But we all know that--no matter how strong we make this JOBS bill--some workers…
I support the Internet Tax Freedom Act. This bill represents a reasonable compromise. We should enact it. A tremendous amount of work went into this bill. I commend the Commerce Committee for its effort to resolve some of these complex…
That bill not only reauthorized EDA, but significantly improved EDA's authority.
I wish to mark the passing of an outstanding public servant, former member of the Senate community, former staffer to Senators, and former staffer for the Senate Finance Committee--Paul Offner. Born in Bennington, VT, Paul spent part of…
I rise today to say I most regretfully oppose the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the bill. I do not think we are quite ready. I do not think we are ready to tackle this important and complex legislation at this time…
in the next week, millions of Americans will do their duty, obey the law, and complete their income tax returns. Although this is clearly one of our citizens' least favorite annual rituals, most taxpayers will do what's right and provide…
I rise to oppose the pending motion to invoke cloture. We are here today because the majority chooses not to allow a vote on a minimum wage. It is that simple. That is wrong. It is wrong because the millions of hard-working Americans…
the great British Prime Minister William Gladstone called the U.S. Senate ``the most remarkable of all the inventions of modern politics.'' If you stop and think about that a little bit, in the political process there is probably no…
Clearly, to make welfare work, there has to be adequate childcare support. It is a no-brainer. I appreciate Senator Grassley's efforts to help improve this bill. I appreciate, therefore, even more the amendment offered by the Senators from…
I appreciate the chairman's view that this side of the aisle is attempting to drag things out a little bit. The fact is, our side is willing to have a vote on this amendment and on other amendments. We will enter time agreements. There is…
We are here today to reauthorize the 1996 welfare reform law. The 1996 law has actually worked pretty well. I think all commentators would agree with that statement. In fact, it has worked much better than people thought it would work. It…
I reinforce the words of Senator Reid. We want this bill passed. This is a jobs bill. This bill provides a tax break for the domestic manufacturing industry. An overwhelming majority of Senators on both sides support this bill. Actually…
let me take a few moments to review where we are on this legislation. First, I don't want to sound melodramatic but this is an important bill. This bill would help to create and keep good manufacturing jobs where they should be; that is…
I commend Senator Bayh for suggesting this. My guess is it will be adopted without too much difficulty. I have been pushing for a long time, and I know the chairman of the committee has, as well, the package of extenders. We have crafted…
a fundamental feature of any income tax system is the ability to use losses to reduce taxable gains. If a company has gross income of $100,000 and losses of $50,000, we don't force the company to pay tax on $100,000--they only pay tax on…
While the Senate went off this bill and considered the budget just a week ago, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released new job figures for February. Those data show 8.2 million people are still unemployed. That is more than 2 million more…
securing this nation's borders and keeping Americans safe from terrorist threats is of the utmost importance to this body. That is why I support the men and women who serve this country. Thousands of men and women are currently deployed in…
I am going to have to oppose this amendment offered by the Senator from California, Mrs. Boxer, and I would like to take a moment to explain why. The spending proposed by the amendment is for a good purpose. We can and should find ways to…
Politicians like Max Baucus
