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.
the Sense of the Senate amendment of my colleague from Arizona notes that the current tax system is overly complex and burdensome and that action must be taken to produce a tax system that is fairer, flatter and simpler. I couldn't agree…
I voted for the amendment of my colleague from Minnesota because I support providing a tax deduction to parents to help defray the costs of a higher education for their kids. Senator Wellstone's amendment would also permit taxpayers who…
Since this is indeed the case, I wonder why our friends on the Republican side were not willing to highlight their proposal to drill for oil in the Arctic Refuge as the leading assumption in their report, given the fact that it accounts…
It also has come to my attention that the latest CBO savings estimate for opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge [ANWR] for oil drilling is just under $1 billion. Does the Senator from Nebraska find it odd that there is no mention…
the Public Buildings Reform Act will go a long way to helping Congress make wise decisions on public buildings construction. It will help Congress achieve some discipline with respect to the cost of new federal buildings and courthouses…
I rise to discuss a subject of great importance to Montana, my home State, and also to me personally. That is the subject of the proposal to cut the gas tax by 4.3 cents over the rest of the year. I am reminded of a comment made by the…
in December of last year, my staff and I, as well as some Montanans who were in the DC area, traveled hundreds of miles to West Virginia to see a football game. It wasn't just any ordinary football game, it was the NCAA Division I-AA…
this one is real simple. If you raise the minimum wage, you provide working people with a higher salary and a better standard of living. And so I come here in very strong support for the minority leader's effort to give working people a…
this morning we were sad to learn of the passing of one of our most distinguished former colleagues, Senator Edmund Muskie of Maine. Ed Muskie served our Nation in many ways. He was a soldier. A Governor. The first chairman of the Budget…
Now, I believe that many companies have legitimate grievances with some of the State tort laws. But they should take the complaints to the States and do the job there. It is simply unnecessary--and really, it is wrong--to bring in Federal…
I am proud to bring to the attention of the Senate, the courage and patriotism of a brave young Montanan. Shawn Austin, a Billings-born 21-year-old, was shot in the left shoulder while patrolling his base in Northern Bosnia. Shawn spotted…
This amendment is about harvesting dead and dying timber in an environmentally responsible manner. That is all this amendment is about. It is not about hurting the timber industry, taking away jobs, or stopping timber harvesting in our…
it is all too easy for people in Washington to lose sight of what really matters. What really matters is how decisions made here in Washington actually affect average American families. The Medicare Program is a good example. As the future…
it is time to get the farm bill done. So I rise in support of this bill. But I do so with some misgivings. Now, I know that the first rule of medicine is ``Do no harm.'' And I am well aware that a lot of Americans have adjusted their…
Improvement is necessary in order to provide some kind of certainty so farmers know in the future--when prices are not as high as they are now--that there is some stability, some certainty. Improvement is necessary so farmers can continue…
the job of a news photographer is not an easy one. For every picture of a child enjoying building a snow man with her parents--there is a picture of a crime scene or a picture of a car wreck. Only the photographers themselves truly…
at a time when we hear so much about what is wrong with America, I want to take a moment to talk about a place where good things are happening. That place is Malta, Montana. Malta is a small community in Northern Montana, up along what we…
The problem from Montana's perspective is that the Stillwater Mine has only recently begun to recover its costs of production as the price of palladium has stabilized at a level sufficient to justify operation of the mine. Because of the…
Our concern is with the proposed sale of palladium and platinum in the stockpile. The national defense stockpile of palladium represents the equivalent of 20 percent of the annual demand for this metal, and the national defense stockpile…
Thank you, Mr. President. Vietnam Moving Wall Opening Ceremony Mr. President, this morning, the Vietnam Moving Wall--the portable replica of the Vietnam War Memorial--came to Bozeman, MT. I would like to offer my thanks and congratulations…
[Americans] are going to great lengths, thousands of miles to other countries, to avoid paying their fair share. In a metaphorical sense, burning the flag, giving up what should be their most sacred possession, their American citizenship…
in ``A River Runs Through It,'' Norman Maclean wrote, ``in our family, there was no clear line between religion and flyfishing.'' These words sum up the way we Montanans feel about our blue ribbon trout streams. Great flyfishermen--men…
Very little is known about industrial waste. Much more is known about municipal waste. That is why we in the committee decided the limits we came up with. I think it is very, very dangerous to legislate in ignorance. Very dangerous. This…
The National Highway System authorization bill repeals the national maximum speed limit. This is a commonsense feature. Repeal removes the threat of Federal highway dollar sanctions if a State does not post its roads at a 55- or…
The fact is this amendment will sink this bill. The reason is because there is so much construction, demolition material, there is so much sludge, there is so much wastewater treatment, there is so much of this in interstate commerce…
Politicians like Max Baucus
