Conference Report on H.R. 4520, American Jobs Creation Act of 2004
CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 4520, AMERICAN JOBS CREATION ACT OF 2004 -- (House of Representatives - October 07, 2004)
Mr. REYNOLDS. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 830 and ask for its immediate consideration.
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Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, let me just, if I can, respond to the remarks that the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Hayworth) offered a moment ago.
You would have thought he was Robin Hood here at the well. He talked about the tax relief that they are giving to the little guy. The tax relief that this Congress has given now in terms of four tax cuts has overwhelmingly gone to the people at the very top of the income scale in America. But we have an obligation to object not only to the actions but to the rhetoric that was offered a few moments ago.
We are now fighting two wars with four tax cuts. The Republican Party says with a straight face that Social Security has got a problem, after they took $2.2 trillion out of the budget during the next 10 years. Have a $4.5 billion problem here with European Union and our other trading partners? Let us have a $140 billion solution.
Do you know what that is the equivalent of? Using a machine gun to clean the wax out of our ears. That is how far-reaching this is.
Now, just here 3 years ago the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. Johnson) and a number of us were involved in what I thought was an entirely legitimate campaign to keep Stanley Works in America instead of reincorporating to Bermuda. Well, Stanley Works decided to stay in America. I was reminded of it the other night as I came through the airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. Stanley Works, New Britton, an American address.
What does this legislation do to one of its competitors? You grant them a permanent grandfather clause so that they can stay in a foreign tax haven and not be assessed the same obligation that that company that we fought valiantly to keep in America, to keep an American address, is assessed.
My Dad used to have a great line when I was a child when he saw something that was outrageous. He used to simply say, At least Jesse James had enough honor to wear a mask.
What we are seeing here tonight is another giveaway. They are pushing jobs offshore, and what do they wrap themselves in? Patriotism. This is all we hear from them is the line about patriotism, and then we witness the arguments and its aftermath and we know what it is going to be in terms of this argument some sense of justice?
Well, the news media is going to go through this legislation over the course of the next couple of weeks because we all know tonight we would not have a chance to go through the legislation. Heaven forbid that the minority might have an opportunity to look it over, and then the media is going to pick it apart and they are going to look back and say, who was watching in the House?
This is a bad piece of legislation. I close on the remarks I opened with, we are fighting two wars with four tax cuts.
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