Tax Bill: Two Scoops for Trump & Billionaires, the Rest Can Lick the Bowl
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Tax Policy Subcommittee, spoke during the mark-up of the Republican tax bill (H.R. 1) after Chairman Brady introduced a last-minute 22-page manager's amendment that would change the bill yet again. You may view Rep. Doggett's full speech here. Rep. Doggett said:
"I don't attend social events at the White House – I'm not interested in spending time with a President who attacks my constituents. But I have read that when it comes time to serve dessert, the President likes ice cream. But he always insists on him getting two scoops and the others at the table getting one. There is a lot of similarity in that dessert practice and what is being served up here today.
"If you look at where the money is on the individual side, the most expensive parts are the alternative minimum tax and the estate tax. Those are Donald Trump's personal dips, and those are big dips.
"As a matter of fact, he gets a third scoop of ice cream – because the pass-through provisions are those he's used in the past in his real-estate deals. He gets a big bowl of ice cream and the American people end up getting to lick the bowl and pay for the ice cream. $2.3 trillion dollars of additional debt will go right down on the American people with so little benefit for them.
"The issues here are not whether we will take away from someone, but whether we will create more opportunity for all Americans to share in the American dream. We believe that the better way to grow our economy is to invest in Americans, to invest in American jobs, to give more educational opportunity, to honor the contributions of Dreamers and many of our immigrants make here in America. Those are sure-tested ways to grow America.
"What we are presented with this trickle-down approach of giving most of the benefits to Donald Trump and his buddies has failed to grow American time after time. All it grows is speeches at Republican conventions, not the American economy.
"As for the process, we tend to look at it from this side of the table – our request for hearings this past year have been rejected, President Trump and his Administration didn't have the courage to testify before us and answer questions, the bill was dropped on us at the last minute, with a manager's amendment at the end of Monday and a manager's amendment today in which the Chairman won't explain its provisions, what it costs, what it would do and we don't have anyone here to explain it. But it's not from looking at this side of the table that counts. It's from looking at the other side of the table. The side of the table that so many people across America are looking at this and trying to figure out: what good does this do for me and my family. The answer to most of them is not anything, except giving you the opportunity to pay for more debt. This whole process is about a bill so bad, so wretched, that they fear the involvement not just of us as Members of this Committee on a fair and democratic basis, but they fear the examination of this bill by the American people.
"That's why they pass it today, in this contrived way, and they will bring it up on the House Floor next week. It is only by the American people getting involved, contacting their representatives, by demanding fairness in this bill, that we have the opportunity to reject it – as must be done."
Rep. Doggett previously spoke on the secrecy surrounding Chairman Brady's new manager's amendment introduced today. You may view that speech here.
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