Source: United States Senator for Kentucky Mitch McConnell
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding the Democrats’ reckless tax and spending spree:
“Later today, Senate Democrats want to take their next big step toward playing Russian roulette with our country. They want to begin pushing through a reckless taxing and spending spree that was authored by our self-described socialist colleague Chairman Sanders.
“Today, the American people will learn exactly where each of their Senators stand.
“The American people elected a 50-50 Senate, an incredibly close House of Representatives, and a president who pledged to govern down the middle and unify the country. But as soon as President Biden, Speaker Pelosi, and Leader Schumer got the keys, they handed them right over to the far left.
“Remember, Democrats inherited three safe and effective vaccines that were already rolling out nationwide and an economy that was primed to come roaring back. But our colleagues pressed ahead with a massive springtime spending package that even liberal experts said would drive inflation.
“And it did. Overall inflation has risen at the fastest rate in nearly thirteen years. Core inflation’s hit its highest level in almost thirty years. Families are getting hit by higher prices everywhere — from the grocery store, to the gas station, to their housing costs. Small businesses have had trouble reopening because would-be workers are getting a government bonus to stay home.
“So the country is still working through the side effects of the borrowing and spending the Democrats forced through back in the spring. But Democrats don’t just want to refill their socialist prescription. They want to double the dose.
“According to what they just released, Democrats want to unite behind Chairman Sanders’ resolution to spend a staggering $4.2 trillion more dollars. Of course, outside experts estimate the real cost will be even higher still. If it’s even close to fully offset, as they claim it is, this seems almost certain to be the largest peacetime tax hike on record. Let that sink in.
“Even their rough sketch of these tax hikes would shatter President Biden’s promise not to raise taxes on the middle class. Families earning well under the President’s stated threshold would get hit. This new reckless taxing and spending spree will fall like a hammer blow on workers and middle-class families. Fewer jobs. Lower wages. More inflation pushing costs higher and higher.
“What our colleagues are proposing and planning is absolutely jaw-dropping. People want to pretend this is just business as usual. Just liberals doing liberal things using Senate procedure. Make no mistake. This reckless taxing and spending spree is like nothing we’ve seen.
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“The basic math of their taxing and spending is toxic enough. But the radicalism that we’ll be debating on this floor goes beyond the dollars and cents. The policies they want to put behind this budget resolution read like somebody walked across the rotunda to the House and handed ‘the Squad’ a pen and a piece of paper.
“Sweeping amnesty for illegal immigrants in the middle of a border crisis. Regulations that are so radical that our colleague Senator Markey says, quote, ‘the Green New Deal is in the DNA of this… budget resolution. All of the things that are in [this], we talked about in the Green New Deal.’ End quote.
“They want to induce 49 other states to make their electric grids more like California’s. Make it more expensive to mine critical minerals we need to compete with China. They want to take working families’ Child Tax Credit and turn it into a permanent welfare program with no work requirement.
“They want to tamper with the prescription drug industry in ways that would leave Americans with fewer new treatments and fewer new cures. They want to put government’s thumb on the scale of families’ childcare choices, and selectively subsidize parents whose households work the way Washington wants.
“And they want to tax more money out of Americans’ pockets… while reviving a special tax cut that overwhelmingly benefits wealthy people in blue states.
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“Let’s face it. The brute facts of the Senate’s rules mean that if 50 Democrats plus the Vice President stick together, Republicans will probably not be able to save our colleagues from themselves.
“If all 50 Democrats want to help Chairman Sanders hurt middle-class families… If even our colleagues who claim they’re moderates want to follow the far left off this cliff… Well, that will be their prerogative. But we’re going to argue it out right here on the floor. At some length. Every single Senator will be going on the record. Over. And over. And over.
“Senate Republicans will be bringing forward commonsense amendments that represent what Americans actually want and need. Our colleagues can look forward to votes on national security and funding our Armed Forces. Votes to remove backdoor tax cuts for wealthy liberals.
“Votes to protect family-owned small businesses and family farms from crushing tax hikes. Votes to encourage schools to finally re-open in person. To stop the catch-and-release of COVID-positive illegal immigrants coming into our country. To protect taxpayers from being forced to fund the horrors of abortion. And that’s just a sampling.
“Because our Democratic colleagues missed some deadlines, it has been an all-out sprint to prepare amendments. I want to thank our nonpartisan Senate clerks and parliamentarians. They have worked multiple weekends straight. They were kept up late last night processing hundreds of amendments. And they’re going to be up late with all of us yet again.
“If President Joe Biden and 50 Senate Democrats want to outsource domestic policy to Chairman Sanders… if this historically reckless taxing and spending spree is how the modern Democratic Party wants to define itself… if they want inflation and tax hikes to be their legacy… Then Republicans do not currently have the votes to spare American families this nightmare.
“But we will debate. We will vote. We will stand up and be counted. And the people of this country will know exactly which Senators fought for them.”