Earl Pomeroy: “much of the rhetoric coming from the majority in defense of this sinful package is pure fiction. So let us discuss it in…”

“much of the rhetoric coming from the majority in defense of this sinful package is pure fiction. So let us discuss it in those terms. You know, Charles Dickens has written perhaps one of the most famous pieces of fiction discussed at this time of year, the holiday season, A Christmas Carol. The lesson of Christmas Carol, Scrooge, this miserly man, very, very well fixed financially that chose not to give to others. And we know that in the course of this beautiful story the ghosts of Christmas past help him reflect upon the paucity of his life, and in the end he has a new spirit of community, helping others, including the Cratchett family, with the crippled son, Tiny Tim. Well, I think that what the majority wants to do is rewrite the Christmas Carol. It is probably going to be titled ``A Christmas Carol II, Revenge of the Scrooge.'' And in this Christmas Carol, Scrooge, sitting in his mansion, contemplating his wealth, wants more. And rather than be challenged as to the paucity of his inclination, we have a Republican majority, bought and paid for, that is all too eager to placate the most selfish whim of Mr. Scrooge. And so, as the story unfolds, there is more and more for Scrooge, and taking, from the very beginning, a low base, less and less for Mr. Cratchett who loses his job when it is outsourced overseas, tries to find something at minimum wage which has not been raised since 1997, and Tiny Tim, Tiny Tim is left out all together.…”