Political Quotes

“I enjoyed listening to my friend from Michigan, and I would just say why shouldn't we lead by example here in Congress, to whom much has been given? Shouldn't we have the credibility? I would have supported this bill in Ways and Means, with one simple amendment. I offered an amendment to apply the same provisions to Congress. The House of Representatives has a worse record of compliance with our employees than the IRS. The IRS has the best record in the Federal Government. Every single department in the executive branch has a better record in Congress. Why should we have over 500 people on that chart not paying their taxes? If it is such a great idea that you can implement this smoothly and simply for the IRS, why shouldn't it be easier to implement with Congress, which has about 10 percent of the employees but has four times more delinquency? Well, people on the committee were all aflutter. They did not, on a technical basis, allow me to offer this amendment, so I went to the Rules Committee. I think this is a good principle. People ought to pay their taxes. But if you are going to use a sledgehammer like this and it is possible to administer, why doesn't it apply to Congress? Congress sets the rules. Congress funds the IRS. Congress passes that crazy Internal Revenue Code that people hate and then blame the IRS for administering what Congress passed. Now, I am mystified.…”