James Traficant: “America was founded by revolutionaries. America has a $300 billion trade deficit. I agree with the gentleman from…”

“America was founded by revolutionaries. America has a $300 billion trade deficit. I agree with the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Gephardt), the Tax Code is designed to modify economic behavior, and that is why we have to throw it out. If the Founders wanted to modify economic behavior, they would have hired someone like Sigmund Freud to write it. The first Constitution allowed for slavery, treated women like property and Indians like buffaloes; but it had enough good sense to not allow an income tax. When the income tax was brought forward, the Supreme Court struck it down, and Members of Congress screwed it up with an amendment. I support the rule. I support the bill. Now the Linder-Peterson bill may have been scored but they are honest. They throw FICA in. The Tauzin-Traficant 15 percent has not been scored. We leave FICA alone, and so help me God a combination of Linder-Peterson/Tauzin-Traficant will be the law of this land. Now I can remember coming before the Democrats, and they all laughed at me. The Traficant bill would change the burden of proof in a civil tax case. It required judicial consent. They laughed at me. You never gave me a hearing. The Committee on Ways and Means laughed in my face. I want to thank the Republican Party for including the Traficant bill in the IRS reform. Now Democrats, listen to what the Republicans did for the American people. In 1997, before the new reform law, there were 3.1 million attachments on wages and accounts.…”