Political Quotes

“it is time for a reality check. Our friends on the opposite side of the aisle claim they are not the party of tobacco. The reality is that through the eighties and mid-nineties, the Democrats accepted 10 percent more money from the tobacco industry than did Republicans, according to Common Cause. The reality is that three out of five top tobacco PAC recipients in the House are Democrats, with the second biggest recipient being the Democrat minority leader. The reality is that during the recent tobacco debates, our liberal friends took a Republican proposal and turned it into a $868 billion tax increase. Yes, that is billions with a ``B.'' Additionally, that tax would have placed the heaviest burden on lower income Americans who earn less than $30,000 a year. The reality is that the recent tobacco proposal would have done little to curtail teenage smoking, which was one of its original intents, and would have turned a number of trial lawyers into very rich people. I join the Republican leadership to make every effort possible to curtail teenage smoking without massive tax increases. That is reality.”