On the recordDecember 5, 2012
Put the bill on the floor, let rank-and-file Republicans vote their conscience, and this bill can pass. In the New York Times today, it was reported that senior aides on the Republican side are considering just such a strategy to give them a soft landing on this tax debate--agree to the President's offer on the tax, the thinking goes, and live to fight another day on spending cuts. We agree that a tax hike on middle-class Americans should be taken off the table. Once Republicans agree to higher rates on the wealthy, an agreement on the other sticking points of a grand bargain can quickly fall into place. So let's stop with the offers and the counteroffers that are leaked only to manufacture headlines in the press. Let's get serious and cross the biggest item of our to-do list off and get the Senate tax cut bill passed. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.
