Chuck Hagel: “we are engaged in an important debate--a debate about privacy, liberty, and the role of Government in our lives. The…”

“we are engaged in an important debate--a debate about privacy, liberty, and the role of Government in our lives. The American people want less Government, less regulation and less taxes. They want less hassle and more respect from their Government. I am proud to be an original cosponsor of the Taxpayer Privacy Protection Act, which was introduced by my distinguished colleague from Georgia, Senator Coverdell. The Senate will vote on this important legislation later today, and I urge all of my colleagues to support it. As the April 15 income tax deadline approaches each year, Americans rush to file their returns while wading through a paper storm of tax forms that even some tax lawyers have trouble understanding. During tax season, animus for the IRS reaches its peak as taxpayers are reminded what an intrusive, overbearing bureaucracy the Internal Revenue Service has become. Nobody likes taxes, and nobody likes tax collectors. They are necessary evils. But if we must have them, then we need to do all we can to ease the burden they impose on our citizens and to make the system user-friendly and respectful of our people. The IRS system today is neither user-friendly nor respectful. Today we have an IRS that is out of control from top management all the way down to its field offices, and the American taxpayers are paying the price for that disarray--a price in inefficiency, inconvenience, intrusiveness, and even harassment. The American people deserve better.…”