Nick Lampson: “I have been listening. This morning also we were listening to our colleagues across the aisle talk about in their…”

“I have been listening. This morning also we were listening to our colleagues across the aisle talk about in their 1-minute speeches, one by one come up and complain about the Democrats engaging in class warfare. Our budget agreement that we voted on earlier this year called for $825 billion in tax cuts. Each party came up with a plan to distribute those tax cuts. The President presented a plan that would place our priority on giving those tax cuts to families to help them support their children, pay for college, and to provide for retirement. I proudly voted for that package, which I believed was a responsible way to cut taxes while we were making significant spending cuts along the way. Our colleagues across the aisle created their own blueprint also for the distribution of these taxes. According to the office of tax analysis, as the gentleman has already spoken of a few minutes ago, this Republican plan would give two-thirds of the tax breaks, two-thirds to the wealthiest one-fifth of American wage earners. By comparison, the President's plan would provide two-thirds of the tax breaks to the middle 60 percent of American wage earners. And they have the temerity to accuse Democrats of class warfare. If this is war, then let us examine who each side is fighting for. The Republicans want to repeal the alternative minimum tax, as we heard also a few minutes ago, thereby helping the largest and most profitable corporations avoid paying income taxes.”