On the recordDecember 7, 2011
We simply cannot leave Washington before extending the payroll tax cut and unemployment assistance. With our economy still struggling and unemployment remaining unacceptably high at 10.4 percent in my home State of Rhode Island, now is not the time to take more money out of the pockets of hardworking families. Allowing the payroll tax cuts to expire at the end of this month will mean less money in the pockets of 600,000 hardworking Rhode Islanders. It is absolutely critical that we extend the payroll tax cut which is saving working families an average of $1,000 per year and would add $400 million to Rhode Island's economy next year. We have to do everything we can to strengthen our middle class families who are struggling to make ends meet and provide assistance to those families who need it most. If Congress does not extend emergency unemployment assistance, thousands of Rhode Islanders, as well as millions of Americans who rely on this critical safety net, will lose their assistance. This will have a devastating impact on these families and on our economy. Rather than providing subsidies to Big Oil companies and arguing for more tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires, it's time for Congress to stand up for American families and to extend the payroll tax cut and unemployment compensation. ____________________
