Bill Archer: “Mr. Speaker, today the Congress is launching into a debate to do the right thing, to correct the terrible wrong in the…”

“Mr. Speaker, today the Congress is launching into a debate to do the right thing, to correct the terrible wrong in the Tax Code that is called the marriage penalty that penalizes Americans simply because they got married. That is truly wrong, and we should all be proud to have the opportunity to correct this injustice. Indeed, the fundamental principle of doing what is right has driven the Republican agenda since we got into the majority in 1995. We have worked to fix what was wrong and to do what was right. It was right to make Congress live under the laws that apply to everyone else, and we did that. It was right to balance the budget so that we do not leave greater debt to our children and their children, and we did that. It was right to strengthen Medicare so that older Americans could have more confidence that their bills will be paid, and we did that. It was right to give families the child tax credit so that today, every family gets $500 per child. For a family with 2 children, that is $1,000 a year. We did that, and it was right. It was right to give tax breaks for higher education, and it was right to eliminate the capital gains tax on the sale of houses. It was right to fix the broken welfare system so Americans could discover independence, the freedom of work, and the power of responsibility. We did that.”