It doesn't have any impact on the tax rates of our wealthiest citizens. They're already in those top brackets. Those who advocate eliminating indexing are trying to perpetrate a cynical hoax on lower and middle-income earners in America. In the last few months, we've seen the initial phases of a strong and steady economic recovery. Retail sales and produc- tivity are up.
Real wages are up.
Those are the two highest, most solid gains for any month since the recovery began. Those who talk about raising taxes are gambling with the future of the recovery. And that's a game that none of us here on this platform intend to play. A weak economy wasn't the only cause for concern in the 1980 election. During the last decade, our military strength was permitted to erode dangerously.