Bill Pascrell: “I rise to explain why I will vote to uphold the President's veto today. I am on Record as having voted for H.R. 8 as…”

“I rise to explain why I will vote to uphold the President's veto today. I am on Record as having voted for H.R. 8 as well as the Democratic plan. The estate tax puts an undue burden on small business owners and farms who are the heart of America's middle class, often making it difficult to pass their enterprises on to family members. It is my firm belief that the estate tax in its current form needs to be changed. There is no argument there on either side. The President has shown that he is willing to sit down and work out a solution with all parties rather than this be bipartisan. He said and wrote to us, the entire House of Representatives, on August the 31st, ``I am returning herewith without my approval H.R. 8, legislation to phase out Federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes over a 10-year period. While I support and would sign targeted and fiscally responsible legislation that provides estate tax relief for small businesses, family farms, and principal residences along the lines proposed by the House and the Senate Democrats. . . .'' This should not be a partisan issue. I am opposed to allowing taxpayers to be pawns in an election year battle. This political posturing today is unfortunate. I have voted for many of the very taxes that have been proposed on both sides of the aisle, and I voted for the repeal of this tax. But we need to take a look at all of this together.…”