{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.peters.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/peters-floor-remarks-calling-for-bipartisan-fiscally-responsible-tax-reform-that-helps-middle-class-families-", "Peters Floor Remarks Calling for Bipartisan, Fiscally Responsible Tax Reform That Helps Middle Class Families", "2017-11-30", "2017", "2017-11", "Democrat", "House", "MI", "Gary Peters", "P000595", "www.peters.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "11.30.17\n\t\t\t Peters Floor Remarks Calling for Bipartisan, Fiscally Responsible Tax Reform That Helps Middle Class Families  \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t Peters: \u201cA trillion and a half in new debt for our children is not fiscally conservative, it is fiscally irresponsible.\u201d\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t WASHINGTON, D.C.\u00a0\u2013 U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) spoke on the Senate floor today in opposition to the Senate Republican Tax bill that will balloon the national debt and disproportionately benefits corporations and the wealthiest Americans more than middle class families. Below is video and text of his remarks as prepared for delivery:\r\nWatch the full video\r\n\u201cToday, we are debating legislation that will dramatically reshape the American economy. It was written \u2013 and continues to be re-written \u2013 in secret, by only one party.\r\n\u201cIt didn\u2019t have to be this way. Done right, this process could have had broad bipartisan support. We could have passed tax legislation that was fair, that was simpler, and that was fiscally responsible. We could have passed tax legislation that truly focused on middle class families and helped to raise wages.\r\n\u201cInstead, you have a bill that fails \u2013 dramatically \u2013 on every single one of these principles.\r\n\u201cThis bill fails in so many different ways, I think it\u2019s helpful to talk about each myth that\u2019s being told.\r\n\u201cFirst, let\u2019s dispense with the myth that this is a middle class tax cut.\r\n\u201cThe bill makes dramatic \u2013 permanent \u2013 cuts to corporate taxes, while making small, temporary changes to the taxes of middle class families. According to the Joint Committee on Taxation, for many working families, the tax changes are less than $100 per year \u2013 or more simply put \u2013 about two dollars a week.\u00a0\r\n\u201cThat is not a middle class tax cut. That is a myth.\r\n\u201cThe second myth that we hear is that the corporate tax cuts in this bill will \u201ctrickle-down\u201d and raise the wages of average workers. If that were true, we would probably hear some of these CEO\u2019s delivering the good news to their hardworking employees. But, it\u2019s not true. It\u2019s a myth.\r\n\u201cWe know this because the CEO\u2019s themselves are telling us what they will do. Yes, they are actually telling us, and it isn\u2019t raising wages. They have been clear, they are going to use the money that this tax bill gives them to buy back shares of their own companies to boost stock prices, and they are going to increase payouts to wealthy shareholders.\r\n\u201cCEO\u2019s are telling the White House this directly. At a November 14th gathering of CEO\u2019s with Gary Cohn \u2013 the White House\u2019s top economic advisor \u2013 the room full of executives were asked who would take the money from the tax cuts and invest it back into their businesses. Only a couple raised their hands.\r\n\u201cThey weren\u2019t up because they have no reason to lie, their intentions have always been clear. They are going to take the money the tax bill hands them, and reward their executives and their wealthy shareholders.\r\n\u201cAgain, we know this is going to happen, because CEO\u2019s are telling us it is going to happen.\r\n\u201cAnd the bill keeps getting worse. We are hearing this myth that these tax cuts will pay for themselves, they won\u2019t.\r\n\u201cAfter years of telling the American public how important it is to address the debt and deficits, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are now going to pass a bill that dramatically increases deficits.\r\n\u201cNon-partisan analysis shows that this bill will inject one and a half trillion dollars of debt onto our economy, debt that my Republican colleagues should prepare to accept as their own creation if this bill passes.\u00a0\u00a0\r\n\u201cA trillion and a half in new debt for our children is not fiscally conservative, it is fiscally irresponsible.\r\n\u201cIt didn\u2019t need to be this way, we could work together to build a tax code that lets working families in Michigan keep more of their hard earned money, levels the playing field for our small businesses, and keeps good jobs here at home in the United States.\r\n\u201cMichiganders \u2013 and all Americans \u2013 deserve a tax code that is fairer, simpler, and more responsible, not more multi-national corporate giveaways and massive new debt.\r\n\u201cThis bill clearly fails on all these points, and I urge my colleges to vote no.\u201d", 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.peters.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/peters-floor-remarks-calling-for-bipartisan-fiscally-responsible-tax-reform-that-helps-middle-class-families-"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.561892917379737, "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"}