Executive Calendar
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, you have heard the quote: ``In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.'' Of course, that was from Benjamin Franklin back in 1789.
Well, just as Franklin predicted, the tax man cometh on Monday. This year, tax day follows a very strong March jobs report. Our booming economy remains an incredible boon for U.S. workers. Employers added 196,000 jobs last month. It beat all expectations. U.S. unemployment is right now at historic lows. It has remained at or below 4 percent now for over a year. Weekly jobless claims have fallen to a 50-year low--50 years. It has never been lower, and the unemployment rate for women is now the lowest since 1953.
Wages have increased by more than 3 percent, the fastest growth in a decade, and it is worth noting that in recent months, the biggest pay increases have gone to lower income workers. Bigger paychecks mean a higher standard of living. Bigger paychecks mean the median household income continues to rise and is, today, at the highest level ever in the United States.
There are currently 7.6 million jobs open. We actually have more open jobs in America today than we have people to fill them. Small businesses recently set hiring records, and 60 percent of small businesses have additional plans to hire more people. You would have to go back 20 years--two decades--to find as many new manufacturing jobs as we have added last year.
So this solid jobs news reflects an American economic renaissance brought about by Republican tax reform. Republicans reduced tax rates across the board. We have done it for individuals and have done it for businesses starting in 2018. We lowered tax rates for small businesses, as well as for family farms and family ranches, which is certainly a big thing for me in Wyoming. We nearly doubled the standard deduction. We cut our excessively high corporate tax rate as well so U.S. companies are able to compete better globally. We made it easier for business owners to recoup the cost of their investments because we want them to invest and hire more people in the process.
As a result of Republican leadership, American workers have abundant opportunity. The Washington Post reports that due to the strong labor market, economists, they say, now foresee ``almost no risk of an imminent recession.'' According to the Post article, ``As long as hiring remains strong and wages are climbing, the economy is likely to continue growing, experts say, because people typically spend more when they are not worried about losing their job.''
Our economy is strong. Our economy is healthy. Our economy is growing. The U.S. GDP has risen 3 percent year over year. Lower tax rates have freed job creators, giving companies the confidence to invest, to grow, and to hire. Employers have created more than 3 million jobs since tax reform passed and 5.5 million new jobs since President Trump took office. With faster job growth and better profits, businesses can invest more in their workers.
Last year, a number of Wyoming employers boosted pay and benefits due to tax reform. Darden Restaurants, with locations nationwide, including in Cheyenne and in Casper, invested $20 million in its workforce. Kroger grocery stores and convenience stores, with more than 1,400 employees in Wyoming, well, they invested $500 million to boost worker pay. Kroger plans to add, actually, 11,000 more jobs.
Many companies in Wyoming have made similar investments. I hear about them every weekend. Our utility company in Wyoming, Rocky Mountain Power, has rewarded our customers as well. It decreased its electricity rates last year by 3 percent, and, they say, as of course other utilities have across the country, it is a direct result of tax reform.
Democrats, on the other hand, are threatening to reverse these gains and dramatically increase taxes with their extreme socialist agenda. Democrats want to take over all of healthcare in this country and eliminate insurance from 180 million Americans. That bill was introduced today by the Senator from Vermont and cosponsored by, I assume, just about every Democrat who is running for President who is a Member of the Senate.
Medicare for All, let's be clear, is government-run healthcare. It has an estimated 10-year price tag of over $32 trillion, meaning massive tax hikes for American families.
Democrats also want to control our energy sector. It is called the Green New Deal. Its estimated 10-year price tag is $93 trillion. This unaffordable, unworkable plan would destroy our economy and dramatically increase taxes.
Far-left Democrats are touting tax-the-rich plans that would punish success. These include raising the top marginal tax rate to 70 percent, imposing a 2-percent annual ``wealth tax,'' and raising the top estate tax rate to 77 percent on farmers, ranchers, and business owners.
Republicans dramatically reduced the estate tax or the ``death tax'' as a result of tax reform. This tax is double-taxation. It taxes money that has previously been taxed already. It hurts family-owned businesses, and it hurts ranchers and farmers and should be fully repealed.
Clearly, Democrats have taken a sharp left turn. Their policies will send our strong, healthy, and growing economy careening over the liberal cliff.
Republicans' pro-growth tax relief has produced a booming economy with millions of new jobs and larger paychecks. We freed job creators to hire again. We put Americans back to work. We raised the standard of living. Thanks to Republican tax reform, America is back in business.
So I say, we must come together. We must do it now. We must embrace commonsense policies that will continue our progress. Republicans have provided successful solutions. Democrats are now promoting the failure and the horrors of socialism.
Thank you, Mr. President.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source