pro tempore as president majority whip i ask consent to be recognized on behalf of majority leader for an opening statement without objection sort of this president today the senate will conduct morning business for sixty minutes with the majority controlling the first half the republicans controlling the second portion following morning business the senate will resume consideration of the water resources legislation several amendments were offered to this bill yesterday and this morning one of those amendments the amendment offered by the senator from ca oklahoma coburn number ten nine zero will be debated until eleven forty five then a vote will occur with respect to that amendment the senate will recess as usual today from twelve thirty to two fifteen for party conference meetings other votes with respect to amendments to the water resources legislation will occur this afternoon as majority leader mentioned yesterday a lot of work remains to be done prior to the memorial day recess so members should plan accordingly during yesterday's session the majority leader offered two amendments on the issue of iraq and cloture votes will occur on those amendments on wednesday additionally cloture was filed on the motion to proceed the immigration legislation that will vote will occur at a time to be determined on wednesday mr president  certain that every member of the senate is conscious the fact that we have a memorial day recess fast approaching at the end of next week we have an ambitious goal that we hope to reach by that time we hope to deal with these outstanding pieces of legislation and to of course provide the supplemental appropriation for the war in iraq i might say at the outset that the water resources development act which senator boxer of california and senator inhofe of oklahoma will bring to the floor in just a few moments is a bill that has been pending before the united states congress for i believe seven years at least six years our failure to enact this bill has delayed the construction of critical infrastructure across america for six or seven years this is infrastructure important to every part of america in the midwest the locks and dams on the mississippi and all my river vital arteries when it comes to the agribusiness of our midwest and other uses  to create profitability and employment all of these are in a state of disrepair and we want to address the modernization and safety measures for these locks and dams and many other projects for six or seven years the debate has gone on unresolved now the house has passed overwhelmingly the water resources development act the senate has the same opportunity but we need to do it on a timely basis i want to thank the senator from oklahoma he's offering a member of this morning i'm told by the manager of the bill senator boxer of california he has been cooperative in terms of reducing the debate time giving enough time to explain his amendment for others to speak to it and bring it to a vote and now i urge every other senator this is the day if you have an amendment to the water resources development and bring it to the floor today after two fifteen after the conference lunches bring your amendment to the floor let's have the debate let's have a vote by the end of the day let's have all of the relevant amendments considered to this legislation i think we what to the people who worked so hard to bring us to this moment and now individual senator should know that to delay this there is no excuse this is the day to do it bring the water resources development act and then months to the floor in addition the majority leader has filed two amendments relative to the war in iraq which will be considered on a procedural basis to this water resources development act it's a it's a way to the sentiment of the senate on two different approaches to resolving our difficulties between the white house and congress on the funding in iraq there will be a cloture vote on those amendments tomorrow that's an opportunity for members to express their feelings as everyone knows mr president takes sixty votes to invoke cloture and we are hopeful that we will have a strong bipartisan vote for one of those two approaches but i urge my colleagues to understand this is a very important timely matter we have very little time left to deal with the requirements of funding our troops before the memorial day research recess the democratic majority as well as the republican side have made it clear that we will fund our troops at the end of the day our troops will not go without the resources they need to provide for their own safety and safe return home also we hope this week to initiate a conversation on the immigration bill and this president at this point i will  floor speaking on behalf of the majority leader as we move to morning business i would like to say a few words about the immigration and the previous order leadership time is reserved to the previous order there was a period for the transaction of morning business prep a sixty minutes with senators permitted to speak ten minutes each with the first half of time in the control of the majority in the second half a time under the control of the republicans mr president senator mehlman this president speaking in morning business it is obvious to most americans are immigration system is broken twelve million undocumented immigrants live in the united states today hundreds of thousands are arriving each year in america today unscrupulous employers hire undocumented immigrants because they can pay them less than american workers and force them to work in conditions that americans wouldn't tolerate employers can do this with impunity because our government does not enforce immigration laws that prohibit hiring undocumented immigrants immigration is a complicated issue that ignites strong passions some would rather avoid this issue because it is so sensitive but congress has an obligation to fix our broken immigration system we need a comprehensive approach one that is tough but fair we need first to improve border security by increasing manpower and deploying new technology we need to enforce the law against employers who are hiring millions of undocumented workers we need a realistic approach to the twelve million undocumented workers who live and work in our country i to commend our majority leader senator reid in nevada he's not afraid of tackling the tough issues including immigration reform he knows it's an important national priority last week the majority leader introduced immigration reform legislation the senate will begin debating this week senator reid did a reasonable thing he said that we should begin the debate where it ended last year with the bipartisan kennedy mccain hagel martinez bill this bill sponsored by republican senators chuck hagel mel martinez arlen specter john mccain sam brownback lindsey graham and many democrats passed the senate last year on a bipartisan vote of sixty two to thirty six of course that bill was only the starting point will be only the starting point of this debate senator reid to set aside a full two weeks to complete that debate members are going to have ample opportunity to offer amendments this is the right place to start this isn't a perfect bill i voted for it realizing there were real imperfections but it reflects the culmination of months of work last year here hearings and marathon markups in the judiciary committee which i serve on over thirty roll call votes on the floor of the senate the bill is flawed but it's comprehensive it includes provisions to secure our borders strengthen enforcement of our immigration law and address undocumented immigrants who live in our country i'm confident that over the next two weeks mr president through the amendment process we can improve this bill pass legislation will be important step to fixing our broken immigration system unfortunately there's been a hue and cry from the other side of the aisle some object to debating this bill it's ironic to say the least that those on the other side who do not want to d ebate bipartisan legislation are objecting to a bill written in large part by their own side of the aisle and a bill that was passed when the republican side of the aisle controlled the senate last year it's hard to understand how twenty one members of the senate who voted for this bill last year now object even proceeding to it now as the base bill for our debate they understand as we do this bill is going to change once coming to once it comes to the floor but if they object to even bringing the measure to the floor the same measure they voted for last year one has to question whether they're committed to comprehensive immigration reform some argue on the republican side the backroom negotiations between the white house and republican and democratic senators are close to a deal and that starting the debate on immigration before that deal is reached is premature i don't think that's a legitimate argument i've been in many of these negotiations and i will say a great amount of effort has been expended to move this bill forward some parts of it i think are very positive disagreement between the white house and the senate i think is a step forward there are some that is positive some very controversial but human nature and political nature or interesting people will not move toward a goal unless they face a deadline how many people wait until the last minute to file their tax returns how many people wait too long for that check up at the dentist really when we know we're facing a deadline and time is running out we make important decisions the same will be true for this immigration debate bringing last year's bill to the floor which passed with overwhelming bipartisan roll call as the base bill is going to really move those negotiators in that room to a conclusion more quickly to leave this open ended and say well at some time in the future we'll get back to it is an invitation for the talks to break down and the tests for instance disappear we don't want that to happen we can't afford to wait any longer the senators the senate's calendar is full this year there are so many things we need to do to make sure that this congressional session is much more productive than those in the past not the least of which is passing important pro creation bills which now must be passed in order to fund the government we don't want to fall into the same circumstance as the previous republican congress where they failed to pass appropriation bills and then tried to play catch up and failed again leaving to the new congress the democratic congress and an awesome responsibility to fund the government for the remainder of this fiscal year there are some who feel that it's now or never for immigration what the majority leader has done is to tell the negotiators this is the time to wrap things up this is the time to reach an agreement this is the time to decide who at that table is there in good faith and who is there just to stop the process if they reach an agreement it can be considered on the floor of the senate as an amendment to the bipartisan kennedy mccain  martinez bill which is being offered as the starting point of this debate if there's no agreement these differences can be aired publicly and voted on over the next two weeks i understand goshi asians continue even as i speak i hope they reach an agreement  comprehensive tough but fair and one that every member of the senate can seriously consider supporting but these negotiations are no excuse for avoiding public debate at some point they have to move beyond the closed doors of the rooms of the capitol building into the bright lights of the senate chamber and let members then speak to their wishes and their intentions on this important legislation i disagree with some of the ideas proposed by those on the other side of the aisle i'm sure they disagree with some of my approaches but i respect their views and i hope that they will look at this as a constructive opportunity should the senate tomorrow fail to invoke cloture to move forward on the immigration bill it will be a lost opportunity if the twenty one senators who voted for comprehensive immigration reform will not even allow us to bring the matter to the floor at this moment it will be difficult to explain they'll have their chance to amend they'll have their chance to make changes that they think are important they will have their chance to act to senators considering important measures you know mr president there's been a lot of criticism of congress and for good reason when you look at the list of issues that the american people think are important very seldom do you find those issues being debated on the floor of the senate we need change th one of the things most americans agree is that our immigration system cannot be sustained there are too many undocumented workers in this country living in fear being exploited in the workplace uncertain of their future there are too many still streaming across our borders borders that are too porous there are ways to deal with those things and ways that this bill will address that the senate can offer debate and vote on amendments on all of these issues that's how the senate is supposed to work so my colleagues have suggested the block this debate taking place by filibustering this bipartisan bill that passed last year i hope they don't you know there reaches a point where we really need to be held accountable i hope that point will be this week and next as senator reid as majority leader has set make relative to the war in iraq be placed separate in the congressional record from my earlier room without objection sorted thank you mr president mr president time is running out to fund the troops there are many of us who believe that the policy in iraq is a failed policy the numbers that we are given every week are stark and frightening over three thousand three hundred seventy american soldiers have now lost their lives in the war in iraq another five were killed yesterday over the weekend three american soldiers have been kidnapped there is a manhunt underway to try to find them and rescue them as quickly as possible and to all those involved they have our prayers and our wishes for godspeed but we understand the reality of this war a war where almost thirty thousand americans have been killed or disabled a war where many soldiers have returned home with injuries that they'll have to cope with for a lifetime this war has cost us over five hundred billion dollars five hundred billion dollars that could have been spent in america for many things important to us improving our schools and education making certain that every american has basic health insurance making sure that our children all across america have the kind of health care and attention that they need at an early age to be healthy for the rest of their life money that could have been spent at the national institutes of health looking for new cures for diseases and illnesses which which we suffer in america so many things we could have a vest invest that money and instead we have invested that money in a war with no end a war that is now in its fifth year the war in iraq has lasted longer than the korean war this lasted longer than world war two is the most expensive war in the history of the united states save world war two which was in fact a world war where the united states made a total national commitment but we now find that second in rank in terms of cost is this war in iraq there are many of us who understand that americans across the board may have supported the initial invasion but i've had second thoughts i was one of twenty three who voted against this war at the outset in october of two thousand and two there were colleagues on both sides of the aisle who in good faith thought that the president should have the authority to deal with saddam hussein they were misled as the american people were misled by intelligence estimates that were just wrong intelligence estimates that said saddam hussein had weapons of mass destruction to threaten the united states fear of nuclear holocaust fear of mushroom shaped cloud all of these images were paraded before the american people and a short time after we had gone through the tragedy of nine eleven it's understandable that the american people were concerned and fearful and they supported the idea of invading iraq in the hopes of keeping america safe we now learn that in so many ways the information given to the american people before the invasion of iraq was wrong there were no weapons of mass destruction there were no nuclear weapons there was no connection between saddam hussein and the events of nine eleven that were sponsored by al qaida but the invasion took place many of us felt that once our soldiers were in the field it was time to close ranks behind them stop the debate they volunteered they're serving our country they didn't write this policy they're risking their lives right now and we should stand behind them so many of us even those who opposed this war voted against it from the outset voted year after year for the emergency appropriations president bush sent to congress money for our troops in the field well now we're in the fifth year and there is wind sight and now we've been told by our military leaders that even the best military in the world of the united states cannot save iraq only the iraqis can save iraq it has to be the iraqi people through their government that decide to move forward toward stability we cannot police a civil war we cannot contain of violence in iraq even with twenty thousand thirty thousand forty thousand more american soldiers that is a reality and one we should face regardless the president concluded a few months ago he would escalate this war and send even more american soldiers into harm's way i think that was a mistake i think the president was moving in the wrong direction as i said i don't believe our military that would be the best in the world can really contain the violence of the civil war in iraq i certainly don't believe that our military as good as it is can give spine to the iraqi leaders who can't seem to reach conclusions and decisions on timetables about their own future and so the war continues the stay the president asked for more money eighty ninety billion dollars at a time to continue this war in iraq many of us believe that we should do two things fund the troops make sure they have all that they need but change the policy start bringing american soldiers home tell the iraqis once and for all we will not be there indefinitely we're not going to stay until you work up the political courage to make the decisions to govern your country we are going to start coming home and as we come home these are iraqi soldiers that we've spent millions of dollars to train and equip need to stand up and defend their own country the iraqi parliamentarians and leaders in their government need to stand up and make the hard political decisions that is the reality of iraq today is a reality that is real i'm reminded of every morning with the newscasts to tell us of the of the suffering and death which takes place in that country and this president i'd like to say a word too about the iraqi people i was reminded over the weekend when i was home in illinois and a good reminder it was that when you speak about the loss of life in iraq don't forget the innocent iraqis who've lost their lives as well we don't even know what that number is today we know that close to thirty five hundred american soldiers lost their lives we know the coalition forces who have lost their lives we don't know how many innocent iraqis have lost their lives as the victims in the civil war and iraq invasion sixty minutes on sunday night had a gripping story about a youngster a twelve year old who during the bombing of our invasion of iraq lost both of his arms and this young boy whose name was allie came to the attention of people across the world and was given a chance to come to england where he goes to school now and he was really inspiring when he talked about how he was going to make something of his life even though he lost both of his arms he's just an innocent victim of this war who lost his family and friends in a bombing and a tragic incident that we hope we wish had never occurred but keep in mind that these innocent iraqis are part of this calculation about the future of iraq as well if this a civil war is to come to an end we not only need start bringing american troops home we need for the iraqi government to start making decisions to protect their own people and project their own future in a positive way i sincerely hope that at the end of next week when we present to the president the money necessary for the troops we will also make it clear that we are taking a step forward to correct this failed policy in iraq i might also add that if we are successful in changing the policy with this bill it is not the end of the debate mr president we are four months into this new congress four months since the democratic majority took control of the house and senate in a little over four months we have seen a dramatic change in the national debate on the war in iraq for the last four years we have been sleepwalking through this policy in this war in iraq with few challenges from capitol hill the legislative branch of our federal government did little or nothing to meet its constitutional responsibility to challenge the executive when it came to policy and execution of that policy now things have changed now with a democratic majority in the house and the senate the debate is underway as it should be a debate on policy and i think most americans would agree that over the last four months with this new congress we've had a more active and vigorous debate on iraq than any time since this war started that is the way it should be the american people believe iraq is the primary issue that we should focus on and we have and we will continue to even be on the supplemental appropriation bill we will move to a defense authorization bill and a defense appropriation bill giving ample opportunity to members on both sides of the aisle to come up with alternatives to deal with this failed policy in conclusion mr president let me say this there is one key to changing the failed policy in iraq the key to changing the failed policy in iraq is eleven republican senators when eleven republican senators reached the point that they want this policy changed it will happen we have forty nine democratic senators who have voted repeatedly to change that policy to republican senators the senator from oregon senator smith the senator from nebraska senator hagel of step forward and joined us on the democratic side we need nine more with nine more republican senators the failed policy in iraq will change why does it take so many it takes sixty votes in the united states senate to move forward a significant and controversial measure like the change of policy in the war in iraq i was heartened to learn that last week some republican house members went and met the president there were press reports afterwards that they told him point blank they could no longer continue to support his policies change has to take place the president needed to hear that i hope that republican senators who feel the same way will step forward and let me say mr president it is not enough for them to say we will come up with eleven different ideas and each vote one of the time for each of them that isn't the way this works we have to put our minds together try to find compromise and cooperation so that we can serve the best needs of america not only our national security needs but the needs of our troops in the field and the needs of the iraqi people if eleven republican senators will join the forty nine democrats this policy can change we will give them that opportunity tomorrow with two cloture votes and then beyond that some votes i'm sure next week on a conference report when we reach that that stage in the in the proceedings and then in subsequent legislation i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in a spirit of compromise and cooperation try to find ways that we can in this war in an honorable way bring our troops home to the hero's welcome they deserve and say to the iraqi people the americans have given you more than any nation could ever ask for we have you over three thousand three hundred american lives of the best and bravest soldiers in the world we have given you twenty five thousand injured soldiers some with serious injuries they'll carry for a lifetime we have spent five hundred billion dollars we have stood behind your country as you deposed your dictator put him on trial and executed we've stood behind your country when you wrote your constitution and held your elections we've been there for more than four years now it's your turn now it's to the turn of the iraqis to step forward and guide their nation forward we need to understand that we won't have a change in policy unless the president agrees to change and it's unlikely he will or this congress forces a change the only way that occurs is when eleven republican senators joined forty nine democrats to make it happen and make it a reality mr president i yield the floor divided equally between myself sen cornyn and senator gregg without objection sword mr president we celebrate anniversaries around here we find times to look back today happens to be the fourth anniversary of the senate passage of the last of the bush tax cuts and we've heard a lot of rhetoric around here about those tax cuts we heard it in advance we've heard it as they've gone along we continue to hear i thought on the fourth anniversary of the senate passage of the tax cuts it might be a wise idea to spend the time to spend some time with some fact our former colleague senator gramm of texas always used to say i tell my children never argue about the facts facts are things you can look up argue about what the facts might mean but don't argue about the facts we don't take his advice as much as i think we should we spend too much time arguing about the facts let's look them up one of the things we are told constantly is that since the passage of the tax cuts the rich have gotten richer the tax burden has shifted from the rich to the poor and that this is terrible and we need to reverse that trend well let's look at a few facts let's go back to the eight years prior to the time of the bush administration and see what happened in terms of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer while president clinton was the president dividing into five quintiles that's what economists do we see what happened to pretax income during the clinton years in the lowest twenty percent the bottom quintile pretax income went down in the second quintile the pretax income went down the red bars are prior to clinton and the blue bars are after in the middle twenty percent of the pretax income went down in the second highest quintile pretax income went down in the top quintile pretax income went up between the time when clinton was elected and the end of the clinton administration our source for this is the congressional budget office these are the facts what has happened since president bush has been in office let's take a look at the same areas and look with the new data plug it's very interesting since bush has been elected the lowest quintile has seen their pretax income go up the second lowest quintile has seen their pretax income go up come down once again the source for these facts is the congressional budget office all right on this side of the chart you see the share of pretax income this is the number of people focus on the share of income is very high for the top twenty percent and low for the bottom twenty percent so you look at share and you ignore the trend if you want to make the case that the tax cuts have been bad for people the bottom in fact since bush has been president we see that things have gotten better for people at the bottom now this comes as somewhat of a surprise to those who were advising us when we passed the bush tax cut i'd like to quote from the brookings institution they viewed the tax cuts as they were proposed and they had this cogent statement to make about the future and i quote our findings suggest that the tax bill will reduce the size of the future economy raise interest rates make taxes more regressive increase tax complexity and prove fiscally unsustainable these conclusions question the wisdom and affordability of the tax cut and suggest that congress reconsider the legislation in specially in light of the economic downturn and terrorist attacks that  occurred last summer close quote very interesting reduce the size of the future economy since bush has been president the us economy has grown more than the entire chinese economy is now under the bush presidency the us economy has grown two point seven trillion dollars in g d p the total chinese economy is two point three they missed that raise interest rates  make taxes more regressive well let's look at that one in another chart increase tax complexity i'll grant them that congress increases tax complexity every time we pass a law that's an easy prediction to make and prove fiscally unsustainable i don't think so here's the reality of income tax burden by income group taking the specific prophecy made by the people at the  the people in the low quintile were receiving that much earned income tax credit in other words their tax their tax payments were negative they receive the money in transfers now since the passage of the tax cut the amount of money they've received has been greater the second lowest quintile used to pay a little tax is now they receive transfer payments the middle quintile pay that much taxes now they pay less the second highest twenty virtually identical but the trend line is down who has paid the most taxes who has had the greatest increase in taxes it is the top twenty percent the end of clinton administration this is where it was and at the end of the bush term this is where it was was wrong on virtually every point except their prediction that will make the tax law more complex that as i say is a prediction you can always make and always be sure now what about fiscal sustainability all remember when i ran for reelection in two thousand and four right after the tax cuts my opponent said we've got to bring down the deficit the deficit is too high i said not only is it going to come down it is coming down and we see year after year since the passage of the tax cuts the deficit has shrunk it has shrunk in absolute dollars and it has shrunk as a percentage of g d p and we got the same word out of the congressional budget office in o m b at the end of the first quarter but why was you get trink ing deficit when you cut your tax cut tax rates the answer lies in the dynamism of the american economy and we look back again on this anniversary date to see what has happened to people's predictions the red bars are the predictions that the congressional budget office may of the amount of revenue we would receive from capital gains they predicted that the capital gains revenue would stay flat or just barely as a result of the reduction in capital gains tax rate we reduced the capital gains tax rates and guess what happened that shown in the blue line capital gains two thousand and six that knock your socks off they had predicted fifty four billion in realisations and the fact is that it was a hundred and three the actual capital gains tax receipts were substantially higher than projected by cvo well how can that be if you cut the tax rate how can you get more revenue and the answer to that of course is a reality that we so often forget around here and that is the economy is not static the economy is not a sum zero game that says all right if you cut it here then you have to see it rise there if you cut taxes tax rates you have to see the deficit go up we've seen exactly the opposite we've cut tax rates and we've seen the get deficit go down because people respond to economic incentives and when they have an economic incentive to floorman new business create a new opportunity modernize a plant because they won't have to pay so much in taxes as they had previously had to pay the new business the new opportunity the modernized new plan will create new jobs and create new income and therefore more taxes more tax revenue even as the tax rates come down we have seen this historical fact again and again for decades and we continue to ignore it the computers at the congressional budget office are program not to take into account the growth in the economy and not to produce this kind of result so mr president on this anniversary date i thought i would simply share with the senate a few facts that demonstrate that the tax cuts have been good for america mr president center from texas this president to join the distinguished senator from utah senator bennett who gives to me to my mind one of the most cogent and understandable explanations of the economy  given around here and i too want to add a few comments about the fourth anniversary of the jobs and growth tax relief reconciliation act of two thousand and three  while we have a lot of people training a lot of disciplines who make their way to the united states senate i daresay they're not very many of us that have a background in economics or accounting or  the type of disciplines that would help them make good economic decisions but you know the good news about it is i think the fundamentals are pretty clear when it comes to what provides people an incentive to work hard and save and what government policies particularly tax increases make it harder for people to save their hard earned money and  invested as they see fit whether spending it on their family a investing in their children's college education or perhaps buying things that they would prefer rather than having uncle sam stick his hand in their pocket and spend it on things that the federal government wants it's important to go back and highlight some of the challenges are our economy was facing when the senate first passed this pro tax payer legislation just four years ago the economy was hit with not just a one two punch but with a one two three punch we were dealing with the fallout from the corporate accounting scandals of the late one nine hundred ninety s the bursting tech bubble and of course the horrific attacks of september the eleventh two thousand and one all these events combined would have knocked out any other economy in the world but because we acted with well time tax relief that put money back in the pockets of working men and women small businesses entrepreneurs our economy bounce back indeed arc kaname has ward back to two thousand and three act celebrated a number of individual and small business tax relief provisions congress passed two years earlier we allowed parents to take the one thousand dollars tax credit sooner we accelerated relief from higher marginal tax rates the marriage tax penalty and the alternative minimum tax this legislation passed four years ago provided capital gains and dividends tax relief which have helped increase economic activity and fill the federal government's coffers now how could it be that the federal revenue has seen historic highs even as we cut taxes for you years ago well it's for all of the obvious reasons people respond to financial incentives when they know they're going to be able to keep more of what they earn they work harder risk takers and entrepreneurs will invest in ventures that generate revenue not only for them and create new jobs but generate a lot more revenue for uncle sam as well and that's exactly what happened here since two thousand and four government revenues have outpaced projections by the nonpartisan congressional budget office and the deficit this year could tumble to one hundred fifty billion or just about one percent of our nation's gross domestic product things like bonus depreciation and one hundred thousand dollar expensing loud entrepreneurs and small businesses to grow and create jobs this tax relief has helped produce twenty two straight quarters of growth seven point eight million new jobs over the past forty four consecutive months an outstanding accomplishment which makes america the envy of the world and a trend we must continue as we face significant fiscal challenges ahead we can we should take great pride in the economy's performance and look with optimism toward the future as we move for the last thing we should consider as reversing the policies that have generated this kind of beneficial economic activity and cream created so many jobs in america unfortunately this tax relief will soon expire resulting in a tax increase for all taxpayers without a single vote on the floor of the united states senate and the other side is pushing a budget that will result in a seven hundred and thirty six billion dollar tax hike for taxpayers over the next five years this unless it's reversed will not only jeopardize future nomic growth but also the financial well being of millions of americans families small businesses and seniors not making the tax relief that we are celebrating the fourth anniversary of today permanent will result in a tax hike for every american taxpayer a family of four with two children making fifty thousand dollars in annual income would see an increase of two thousand nine hundred two dollars a year in its tax their tax bill or one hundred thirty two percent hike three years ago many of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle argued that the jobs and growth tax relief reconciliation and act of two thousand and three would not only not benefit our economy they actually said it would endanger the economy for example the now majority whip said the republicans who pushed this tax plan have to face stubborn facts and facts can be stubborn and the last time they got a tax cut through the american economy fell backward we not make progress we lost jobs we lost opportunity we lost a lot of hope in this country well there's one thing i agree with the distinguished majority whips about and that is that facts are indeed stubborn things three years ago the senate voted for hope and against fear it voted for progress and against stagnation and it voted for the entrepreneurial spirit and against command and control out of washington d c and this president i think four years later we all have seen and can celebrate the tremendous results as an outcome of this important legislation for this president senator measure first i want to thank senator from texas or as elegant statement and as accurate statement and i want to pick up where the center has left off the senator talks about the fact and this is a fact that revenues the federal government have jumped dramatically dramatically in the last three years in fact in the last three years we've seen more revenues flowing into the federal government than ever in history and the percentage of increase of those revenues has also been his store as this chart clearly shows we are now seeing revenues the federal government which actually exceed the historic revenues to this government historically the federal government used to get about has gotten about eighteen point two percent of gross national product and revenue today we're up around eighteen point five percent we're headed towards eighteen point seven percent that's a significant increase in revenues the federal government and what effect is that had was a senator from texas said it's had a dramatic effect on the deficit because we've gotten all this additional revenue in because the deficits are dropped dramatically now the other side of the aisle argues well so what taxes are still too low on america they should rate we should raise the taxes on americans so they brought out a budget which is going to increase taxes on americans by about seven hundred billion dollars as the largest tax increase in the history of the country should that budget actually come to fruition it looks like it's going to pass and i presume they'll follow up on it they mean what they say over on the other side of the and what will that do to federal revenues that dramatic increase in taxes and what will it do is it economy well we're not sure but we suspect it will slow the economy dramatically and some of these great gains that we've seen the economy the twenty two months of the expansion the seven point four million dollars million new jobs may be significantly impacted by that type of a tax increase we also know that it would create a tax code is taking a lot more money out of americans who work hard we happen to believe on our side we should let americans keep the money they earn as much as possible have a fair tax system is results generate a benefit to working americans by saying listen if you're going to work hard we're going to give you more money we're also going to get more revenues which is the way this has worked out and why have we got more revenues even though we've reduced the tax burden on the american people well the answer is pretty simple it's called human nature when you set tax levels at a fair level which is what we have today people are willing to go out and invest they're willing to go out and take risks they're willing to work harder because they know they're going to get to keep more of what they are and what does that do well that in turn creates a stronger economy which force more people to work and of course that's what we really want more jobs for people and of course the more people have jobs the more checks revenues you end up getting in addition especially in the area of capital gains if you have a fair capital gains rate which is what we have today it causes people to go out and sell an investment which they might otherwise hold onto a person has an asset let's say it's a home or a small business or a stock and they don't want to sell that asset when they're going to face thirty percent or twenty five percent in taxes on that sale because they don't want to pay all those taxes for that asset that they've spent their whole life building up trying to make make ends meet and trying to create a nest egg for themselves but when you put a fair capital gains rate on that sale which is today fifteen percent which is the fair rate which was put in place by president bush's proposals then people are willing to go out and sell that asset and when they sell that asset what happens well two things which are very good for the federal government happens one capital gains occurs so we get revenues otherwise you wouldn't get those revenues because people just sit on those assets they're not going to sell them and pay the high tax rate when you have a fair tax rate they sell them they're going to get the revenues and the second thing that happens is they take that new money that they have from the sale that assets and they reinvest it in by human nature they reinvest it in something that's more productive so you have a more productive society where capital assets are being used more effectively and as a result you get this great job creation in this economic growth and in fact in the area capital ga dramatic increase in revenues have a gains have increased over what the projection was by c b l the congressional budget office by forty seven percent that's a huge jump a huge jump in revenues which we didn't expect  office than expected but we would which we've received because human nature kicked in and people were willing to sell assets take that money reinvest in things that are productive create jobs and as a result we got these revenues and that's why today the federal government is actually getting more revenues then it got under the old tax law where the rates were a lot higher and that's why we've gotten more economic spiritual and more jobs and so that's the good news now from the other side of the aisle and we hear this constant patter well the rich aren't paying enough taxes and and these tax laws they're just proportion in their application i think we need to talk about that for a little bit because let's see what's happened as a result of reducing these tax rates but at the next  basically not the senior chosen basically what's happened is that even with the lower tax rates today wealthy people are paying more in revenues the federal government than any time in history today the top twenty percent of people in this country who have income are paying about eighty five percent of the tax burden let me restate that the top twenty percent of people with income in this country are paying eighty five percent of the federal tax burd under the clinton years the top twenty percent of people with income paid eighty one percent of the federal tax burden so even though we've cut rates we've actually created more revenue from high income individuals now you can you can say how does that happen well again it's called human nature if you have a high income situation individual high income they can either invest in opportunities which are going to produce a taxable event or not produce taxable vents i mean they've got the position to do that so if you have a fair tax rates they'll take the risk they'll make the decision it'll be the entrepreneurs who create the jobs and as a result they'll make an investment which is taxable but if you have a tax rate that's too high which is what the other side  then you basically created an atmosphere an atmosphere where these folks are going to go out and invest a fair amount of their money in things that are tax avoidance legally tax avoidance by their tax avoidance or going to vest or nontaxable events stocks and bonds that don't generate generate income to them that's taxable so what we've done is we've created a tax law were essentially high income people are willing to go out and take risks and do it in a taxable way that generates revenue back to united states and as a result we have the top twenty percent of american income payers paying more in taxes today significantly more than they did under the clinton years and they all turn it into this is also fairly interesting at the low income of this we need people forty percent of them are in the bottom forty percent of people who have income don't basically pay taxes income taxes they pay obviously withholding tax but as a practical matter that segment of our society pays virtually nothing in income taxes they get money back in fact on the earned income tax credit another benefit that the federal gun puts in place under the law today under the president bush's law those bottom forty percent of income earners are now getting about twice as much back twice as much back from the federal government as they did on the clinton years so what's the common combined effect of these two facts of these two things the tax law even though we're generating a lot more revenue for the federal government even though well over that mean number of eight hundred forty two percent of gross national product even though we've had jobs and revenue of of levon percent nine percent fifteen percent were evacuees got a tax law today that's generating more revenue but is also more progressive high income individuals are paying more the tax burden low income people are getting more money back from the federal government and there's another factor here that needs to be pointed at and that's what's happening to senior citizens senior citizens disproportionately benefit from a low dividend tax rate why well it's logical obviously most seniors are retired if they have income it's going to be social security some pension program or dividends and most pension programs also involve dividends and so senior citizens are really the people who are benefiting the most from a low dividend tax rate and yet the folks on the other side of the aisle have just passed a budget where they want to jump the tax rate on dividends by a hundred percent they want to go for a fifteen of economics which was pretty soundly rejected in the sixty's the seventy's the eighty's and the ninety's but they're still attracted to it this is there in that says you just raise taxes and the federal government will get more money and we'll spend it for you another which is this theory that says we're smarter than you we've been elected to the united states senate we're good members of the democratic party we know more than you know therefore we should take your money and we should spend it for you and we can spend it more effectively than you can spend it well that's a philosophy that should and has been rejected as we move towards a much more market oriented economy that's also a philosophy that presumes a higher taxes always generate more revenue the federal government which isn't true higher taxes actually in many instances reduced revenues about a government because they reduce economic activity and they certainly reduce expansion of the economy and they reduce the creation of jobs three presidents have proved beyond any reasonable doubt that when you lower income tax rates you generate economic expansion because people are just people they make a lot they just have common sense and they know if they're going to have be able to keep more of their money they're willing to go out and work harder to get more money but they also know if the federal government's going to take more of their money and a disproportionate amount of their money they're not going to work quite so hard they're not going to take that risk they're not going to create that restaurants open that little small business create those jobs because they don't want to have to be paying all their money in the federal government president kennedy knew that and that's why he cut income tax rates and was successful and generated revenue for the federal government president reagan knew that and he cut income tax rates and as a result the revenues federal government jobs and the economy expanded president bush has shown that once again cut income tax rates expand the economy and as a result get a fair tax level and human nature kicks in and revenues go into the federal treasury but what's unique about president bush's initiatives are that dave at the same time that he's cut rates created this much more progressive system which i just outlined the fact that hyun income tax payers are now paying so much more than they did under the clinton years of the federal share of income taxes and lower income individuals are getting much more back than they did under the clinton years for a more progressive system and it also just proportionately benefits senior citizens people on fixed  of the dividend rate unfortunately so we now have the democrats presenting to us a budget which wants to take us to the french path which essentially is going to dramatically increase the cost of the federal government to americans and as a result dramatically increase the tax level on americans and we'll go down that path that france has gone down and i have to tell you it doesn't work in france productivity is not up in france jobs are not being created in france people don't want to go out and work harder in france and they certainly don't have a more progressive or effective economic system than we have here in the united states so i think we should reject this the democratic approach under their budget of raising taxes and state of the tax laws is generating so much new revenue is so progressive and has such a strong benefit for senior citizens and this president this point you know before so the senate is moving out of an hour of the morning business to resume shortly consideration of our water resources bill floor debate will break today between twelve thirty p m eastern and two fifteen for weekly policy l that happens at eleven forty five eastern a vote is expected on amendment by tom coburn of oklahoma and it will require that sacramento california get flood protection before any work is done on the san diego beaches tomorrow of vote to limit debate on two amendments concerning additional spending for iraq and afghanistan for the wars they are they are actually set forth as amendments to this water bill that is being debated today also today maybe more debate on immigration reform on the floor