Joe Barton: “this country was founded on the principle of no taxation without representation. Today many Americans believe that…”

“this country was founded on the principle of no taxation without representation. Today many Americans believe that principle has been violated and that their elected Representatives in Washington have taxed them so that they can spend money on the special big-spending interests in Washington, DC. To correct this sad situation the new Republican majority has now introduced section 106 of the rule change package. Section 106 would require a three-fifths vote to increase income taxes. It also contains an absolute prohibition against retroactive tax increases. The opponents of this provision have been whining and wailing all evening about the constitutionality of this provision. The constitutional argument simply will not stand. In 1971, Mr. Speaker, in the Supreme Court case of Gordon versus Lance the Supreme Court blessed the constitutionality of supermajority restraints on the tax and spending propensities of government. I might also point out that numerous States have a supermajority requirement for tax increases in their State constitutions, including the State of Arkansas, the home State of our President, which requires a three-fourths vote. I might also point out that we plan, on January 19, to introduce a constitutional balanced-budget amendment that contains a 60 percent supermajority to increase taxes. The real question that we should be asking this evening is whether supermajority votes to raise income taxes really work.”