Political Quotes

“Fixing the ``marriage penalty'' and increasing the earned income tax credit (EITC) for low-income families are important and long-overdue steps toward tax fairness. I support both measures but wish that Congress had made reducing the tax burden for dual-income middle-class families and those most in need of tax relief its top priority 3 years ago, instead of focusing tax relief primarily on the wealthiest Americans. Improving the fairness of our tax code is a laudable goal. The Bush tax policies passed by Congress have added significantly to our national deficit. Congress need not continue to exacerbate the budget while providing reasonable tax relief. As this legislation is written, over $100 billion will be added to our national deficit. The Democratic Substitute, which I support, instead would pay for marriage penalty relief and an increase in the EITC by reducing tax cuts available to couples earning more than one million dollars a year. The Democratic proposal provides a more responsible manner of providing tax fairness that does not further burden future generations with more debt.”