Kevin Brady

The question isn't that there are differences; we have different ideas. The question is, will you commit to coming to the table now to resolve those differences?

So that closer--so you, Mr. Secretary, the point man for the President on tax reform, are you willing to sit at the table and stay at the table to finish fundamental tax reform this year?

It is not fair to taxpayers. The President's budget never has to balance, so Washington never has to live within its means.

Second question: Will you commit to fixing the broken Tax Code for families and small businesses as well as for big businesses?

We are looking to blame each other and looking at what has happened in the last 10 or 12 years, but the world has changed.

The total amount that has been spent in benefits for Americans is $12.8 trillion.

Middle-class Americans, especially those who are earning $38,000 like folks in my district, will not see a tax increase

And that is why I will work with you, the President, Republicans, and Democrats to simplify and fix this broken Tax Code.

We shouldn't be taking more of their money to bail out Washington's inability to control spending.

Americans spend over $160 billion each year trying to navigate through the complexities of the U.S. Tax Code.

The problem with our Tax Code isn't how much money it makes for Washington.

Our Tax Code needs to be genuinely user friendly.

I am prepared to close, so I would be glad to reserve at this time so the former chairman of the Joint Economic Committee may close.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Medicare will be broke in 10 short years.

The glaring fact remains: Medicare's hospital insurance trust fund will go bankrupt in 10 years.

Medicare is on an unsustainable path.

It is my hope that the Committee can work together in a bipartisan way to advance these much-needed structural reforms to save Medicare for the long haul.

MedPAC provides critical information to policymakers about the adequacy of provider payments in the Medicare program.

I am 100 percent for balancing the budget. I did it governor, and it was my goal here in the Congress for years.

But the goal--we should not get sidetracked.

We ought to be--we could save Social Security this afternoon. The truth is, we all know what needs to be done.

If we are going to tackle our biggest challenges, the easy votes are decades behind us.

The American People are demanding it, and I thank you for setting a good beginning for this Committee.

The growth gap between this economic recovery and other recoveries is significant and intensifies our federal spending and debt problems.