DPCC Co-Chair Cicilline: Democrats Have A Bold Economic Agenda For The American People
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman David Cicilline, Co-Chair of the House Democratic Policy & Communications Committee (DPCC), and Representative John Garamendi took to the House floor to discuss the GOP Tax Scam and how Democrats will create better jobs, better wages, and a better future for all Americans through the A Better Deal economic agenda. Below are excerpts from the speech and a link to the video.
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"We just learned today the bill, the tax scam that the Republicans jammed through the house, has come back for another vote because the Republicans made some mistakes and didn't comply with some of the Senate rules. This is what happens when you don't have hearings, you don't have thoughtful deliberation, you don't listen to witnesses who can identify problems with the bill, and instead, you just bring it to the floor."
"Yes, the bill will come back so hopefully the American people will make certain their voices are heard. But this is not the way do you a complicated piece of legislation. The last time Congress did tax reform there were 400 witnesses, experts who came in, hearings month after month because it's complicated and we want to make sure it works right. You're talking about the American economy. None of that happened here. This was written in the dark of night. Some of our Republican colleagues didn't even see the text until it came almost time for us to vote -- this is not a way to do legislation. It is one of the reasons way excluding the Democrats from contributing to this process was a terrible, terrible mistake.
"What's the result? Look, we end up with a bill which does exactly the opposite of what it says it would do. This is a job-killing bill. There's no more urgent priority that all of us have to create good-paying jobs, family-supporting jobs, and we, Democrats, have launched a very bold economic agenda that focuses on better jobs, better wages, for a better future. Millions of Americans will go to bed tonight and lay awake worried about whether or not they have enough money to pay their bills, whether they can put aside some savings for their retirement, whether they can send their kids to school and all of those anxieties come from the fact that they are not making enough money to make ends meet.
"They haven't seen an increase in their income in a very long time, and what this tax bill does, is make those problems worse. This will raise taxes on 86 million middle class families in this country. They call it a tax cut, but for those 86 million middle-class families, it's a tax increase. In fact, 83 percent of the tax cuts go to the top one percent, the very richest people in this country and the biggest corporations. It also makes more generous tax provisions that incentivize companies to ship American jobs overseas. This is not a job creator. The idea that if we just let the people at the very top hold on to all their money, it is going to trickle down to the rest of us, is a job killer.
"We know that doesn't work. They tried during the Bush administration. We had the worst job loss in a generation. It doesn't work because we all know the way you actually create jobs is you grow the middle class. You make sure folks have good-paying jobs, have more money in their pockets to buy the goods and services. Go to any small business in my State of Rhode Island, and I am sure it is the same in the State of California, and ask a small-business owner: What do you need to add a job? What do you need to increase the number of people who work in your business? They will say one thing: I need customers. I need people to buy what I make and sell. That is why strengthening the middle class, raising the income of people in this country, is the way you grow the economy. This is just the opposite.
"I was sickened when that bill passed the floor a few moments ago and I saw our Republican colleagues cheering and hooting and hollering like they were at a ball game. They put points on the board. They didn't put points on the board for the American people. We are going to keep fighting for a tax reform bill that actually provides cuts to middle class families that will help to promote economic growth and create good-paying jobs. We think the Tax Code is broken. We have always been willing to work together in a bipartisan way to make the Tax Code simpler, more competitive, and work for the American people.
"That is not what the Republicans did. This is a giveaway to their donors. Some of our colleagues said it out loud: If we don't pass a tax cut, our donors told us to not call anymore. They actually said that out loud. That is not how you write legislation. Let's not forget who sent us here and whom we should be working for."