James Traficant: “I, for one, do not question the reasons or demean the intentions at all of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Archer), the…”

“I, for one, do not question the reasons or demean the intentions at all of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Archer), the Republicans and the former speaker the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Kasich). I think the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Archer) is a great chairman, and I think America is very fortunate to have the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Archer) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel), two of the best. I want to talk taxes today. I voted for the previous tax cuts. They made sense. Social Security is funded by its own tax. That tax is to ensure the solvency of Social Security. I philosophically and in my heart believe that not one of those pennies should be used for anything else. Having said that, let us take a look at the situation in America today. I can remember from my devastated community, when the CEOs of the companies were so desperate to try and save their companies, they used the pension funds, maybe with good intentions. The economy slumped, and retirees lost their pensions, and Congress had to bail them out. Let me caution Congress today about this so-called booming economy. This just may be a paper tiger. It seems to me if Wall Street sneezes, the world catches pneumonia and Social Security, once again, needs an ambulance. The Archer plan is a good plan. The Rangel plan is a good plan. Today I am going to support the Rangel plan for one major reason: The Rangel plan is the safest and the most pragmatic for our country. I will support the Archer plan.”