{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.merkley.senate.gov/news/press-releases/video-release-merkley-unloads-on-corrupt-gop-tax-scam", "VIDEO RELEASE: Merkley Unloads on Corrupt GOP Tax Scam", "2017-11-28", "2017", "2017-11", "Democrat", "House", "OR", "Jeff Merkley", "M001176", "www.merkley.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "VIDEO RELEASE: Merkley Unloads on Corrupt GOP Tax Scam \n\t\n\t\t \u201cThis is not The Art of the Deal, this is The Art of the Steal\u201d \n\t\n\t\n\tTuesday, November 28, 2017\n\t\n\tWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Oregon\u2019s Senator Jeff Merkley today gave an impassioned speech against the GOP tax scheme as Senate Republicans pushed their plan through committee on a hasty, party-line vote.\r\n \r\n\u201cThis bill is not a bill about helping the middle class,\u201d said Merkley. \u201cIt\u2019s about one simple thing: How to raid the Federal Treasury; how to engage in a massive bank heist to help the very richest Americans.\u201d\r\n\u201cThis is not The Art of the Deal, this is The Art of the Steal\u00a0\u2014\u00a0stealing our funds, our American funds, to enrich the already richest,\u201d Merkley continued. \u201cIt is the product of a vast cycle of corruption, corruption enabled by\u00a0Citizens United,\u00a0resulting in\u00a0vast funds flowing through our election system to elect individuals\u00a0selected by millionaires and billionaires.\u00a0Passing\u00a0this bill raids\u00a0the national Treasury to deliver millions to the billionaires.\u201d\r\n \r\nDespite the fact that the tax plan would reshape virtually the entire American economy and raise taxes on millions of middle class Americans, Senate Republicans appear determined to drastically limit hearings and debate and push the bill through the Senate floor this week.\r\n \r\n\u201cThis corruption has to end,\u201d Merkley said. \u201cThis is a nation constitutionally laid out with the mission of We the People\u00a0\u2014\u00a0not We the Powerful;\u00a0not We the Privileged;\u00a0but We the People. This bill will be seen historically as the ultimate example of the corruption that we\u2019re currently living in. We should defeat this bill. America should rise up and make sure this bill dies.\u201d\u00a0\r\n \r\nVideo of Merkley\u2019s remarks is available here.\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n     \n\t\n \n\t\n    \n    \n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t \n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t  \n    \n\t\n\t\n\t  \n          \n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t  \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.merkley.senate.gov/news/press-releases/video-release-merkley-unloads-on-corrupt-gop-tax-scam"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4609871432185173, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}