Political Quotes

“first, I wish to congratulate the author of this amendment, the Presiding Officer in the chair for the moment, and Senator Craig from Idaho. I think it is an excellent proposal and has been already reflected in the discussion on this floor. It is probably the most significant vote that we will cast in this session of the Senate. Hopefully, it will pass and, if it passes, it will be the most significant action which this Congress has taken in literally decades in order to get its house in order and the fiscal house of this Nation in order so that we may pass on to the next generation a stronger and more vibrant nation than we received when we took the position of responsibility that we have here today as Senators. That is the test which I think any generation must put itself to in evaluating how it addresses its role in history. Do we, as a generation, pass on to our children and succeeding generations a stronger and more vibrant country? The answer today to that question would be no. Under the numbers that have already been discussed here and the proposal sent up by the President in his budget submission, it has been pointed out that a child born today will pay 82 percent of his or her earnings in taxes; that a person born between the period 1950 and today will pay over 60 percent of his or her earnings in taxes. It is only the generation born before 1950 that is going to pay a third of its earnings in taxes.”