American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010--Continued

Floor Speech

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I rise to express my disappointment that we have gotten to this point on this very important piece of legislation that is before us, the tax extenders bill, the jobs package we have been trying to get passed. We have worked very hard to put together a bill that will provide much needed help to families and communities across the country. It is a bill that will make sure our recovery is not jeopardized. It is a bill that would extend tax credits to individuals and small businesses that both of our parties think are important. It provides incentives for clean energy companies to expand and create jobs at a time when we need them. It allows families in States such as mine to deduct local sales tax from their Federal returns, an important boost to the economy. It provides critical support for States that are struggling today to provide health care for their families in these very tough economic times. And it will extend unemployment benefits to support those in our communities who, through no fault of their own, have lost a job and now, as the economy is getting back on track, need support for a few months longer so they can get a job and go back to work. It is a commonsense bill to help our economy get back on track. When we originally brought this bill to the floor, every single Republican said no to supporting our communities. Instead of walking away on this side, instead of furthering their goal of partisan gridlock, we extended a hand to our minority colleagues and worked with them. We trimmed sections they wanted trimmed. We reduced the support we thought was important for our families, but we reduced it in order to get their support and brought it back to the floor again. But once again, they said no to American families. So we went back and a third time trimmed it back even further. We did exactly what they asked us to do.

Now I am saying to our Republican colleagues, it is time to stop saying no. It is time to stop saying no to clean energy companies in my home State and across the country that depend on these tax credits to stay competitive. It is time to say stop saying no to the thousands of police officers and corrections officers and so many others who will lose their jobs in my home State and everywhere if this bill does not pass and our State has to further slash its budget. It is time to stop saying no to the men and women across the country who are desperately trying to find work today but need a little more help to keep their heads above water in these tough economic times. It is time to stop saying no to middle-class families across Washington State who depend on that sales tax deduction that would be extended in this underlying bill to help. They will be out hundreds of millions of dollars if this bill continues to be blocked.

We have tried very hard. Senator Baucus, chairman of the Finance Committee, deserves our gratitude for reaching across the aisle time and time again to work with the other side. We have compromised, and then we compromised again and then again. It is disheartening that the other side has refused to work with us. I say enough already. I go back home to Washington State every weekend. I talk to my constituents. I try to explain what we are doing here in Washington, DC. To be honest, I am having a heck of a lot of trouble explaining why when big banks and Wall Street were on the brink of failure and threatening to blow up our economy, Republicans immediately came together with us to help step us back from the brink. But now that Wall Street is fine, regular families and communities are continuing to struggle, those same Republicans are nowhere to be found. I don't have an answer for the families at home who ask me about this. Quite honestly, I don't get it myself. Because the fact is, we have had put together a bill that is fully paid for with the exception of unemployment benefits, that is a direct stimulus to the economy, that has been passed as emergency spending time and time again under both Democratic and Republican control, because that is exactly what it is. We have done all we can. If those on the other side say no again, it is pretty clear to me they are putting their interests before the interests of our hard-working families who are struggling today.

I know in the State of the Presiding Officer and in my State families are hurting. They are fighting every day to stay on their feet. I am not going to stop fighting to be on their side. There is a tremendous lot at stake in this bill.

I urge all of my colleagues to follow our example and put families and communities and States above partisan politics and goals and work with us to pass this bill so hundreds and thousands of American families can wake up tomorrow and know the Senate was on their side.

I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

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