For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 16, 2001
Remarks by the President to the United States Chamber of Commerce
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Washington, D.C.
Listen to the President's
Remarks
2:25 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very
much. Kelly, thank you very much for that kind
introduction. It's an honor for me to be
here. Tom, thank you for opening up this fantastic
facility. I am thrilled to know that some of my former
governors are with members of the chambers in their respective states,
and I want to say hello to them. I thank all those who are
tuning in. It's kind of nice to be able to speak to so many
folks in so many cities without having to fire up Air Force
One. (Laughter.)
I'm especially honored to be able to speak to
the folks who really help our economy grow, the entrepreneurs, the
business folks of America, the employers, the risk takers, the people
who really work hard to realize the great America Dream.
As Kelly said, this is tax day. All
across America, husbands and wives spent last weekend side-by-side at
the kitchen table, trying to finish their 1040s. You have to
say this for the income tax, it tends to bring families
together. (Laughter.)
The Internal Revenue Service asks our families
in America a lot of questions: how much did you earn; did
you move last year; how big is your mortgage payment. You
know, the truth of the matter is, the IRS knows more about us than our
neighbors do. In a lot of cases, they know more about us
than our families do.
But while the tax system knows a lot about our
citizens, there's a lot our citizens may not know about our tax
system. In 2001, the federal government will take a bigger
share of the U.S. economy in taxes than in any year since
1944. And I remind you, in 1944, we had 11.5 million people
under arms.
The federal government will take more as a
percentage of the national economy this year than it did during World
War II, except for one year; more than any year of the Vietnam War or
the Korean conflict; more than it took to win World War I or prevail in
the Cold War.
Our country is at peace, but our government is
charging wartime prices. Enough is enough. The
American people deserve tax relief. (Applause.)
You often hear it said, we cannot afford tax
relief. But even after adjusting for inflation, the U.S.
government will collect twice as much income tax revenue in 2001 as it
did in 1981. Enough is enough, folks. It's time to give our
folks some tax relief in America. (Applause.)
During the budget debates in Washington, some
members of Congress complained that they did not have enough money to
spend, but in 2001 the income tax will yield $2 billion in revenues for
each and every one of the 535 members of Congress. I think
they should be able to get by on that. (Laughter.) Even the
senators. (Laughter.) No, enough's
enough. People in America deserve tax
relief. (Applause.)
Thanks to the help of a lot of folks here and
all around the country, tax relief is on the way. The
American taxpayer won some important victories a couple of weeks
ago. The House of Representatives voted in favor of a plan
that I think is an important plan, $1.6 trillion in tax relief over the
next 10 years. The Senate approved most of my tax plan, but
wants the government to spend far more.
Some members of the Senate are, unfortunately,
proving the point I make all across the country -- if you send it, they
will spend it. (Laughter.) Federal discretionary spending
rose by 8 percent in 2001. The Senate has just voted to
increase the discretionary spending by another 8 percent in
2002. At that rate, federal discretionary spending will
double by 2010. Think about that. If we keep
spending at the pace the Senate wants, in only nine years' time,
government operations will cost twice as much as they do today.
Now, senators are in their home states this
week listening to the taxpayers. I hope Americans will send
a clear message: excessive federal spending threatens
economic vitality. What we want is a stronger economy, not
larger federal government. (Applause.)
There's a better way: increase
discretionary spending by a moderate and responsible 4 percent -- by
the way, at a rate larger than inflation -- and then reduces -- and
then reduce taxes for everyone who pays taxes.
My plan does not puncture the tax code with
loopholes. It doesn't give special treatment to special
interests. My plan targets only one interest, the public
interest. It directs help to individuals and families and
small businesses. It is a plan for real people, and it will
help produce real prosperity.
Let me tell you a little bit about what tax
relief means for American families. My plan, when fully
implemented, returns about $1,600 to the typical family of
four. Sixteen-hundred dollars pays the typical mortgage for
more than a month. Sixteen-hundred dollars will buy the
typical family nearly three months worth of
groceries. Sixteen-hundred dollars will fuel two cars for a
year.
There are a lot of American mothers and dads
who wake up in America today anxious over bills they have to
pay. Their worries don't get any easier when the federal
government takes more of their income in taxes than they pay for food,
shelter and clothing. For families with children to raise
and debts to pay, tax relief will lift burdens and ease worries.
For small businesses, tax relief means more
customers and improved cash flow, more money to hire more workers, more
money to expand benefits, more money to invest in new
technology. Tax relief will create new jobs. Tax relief
will generate new wealth. And tax relief will open new
opportunities.
If you read some of the news accounts of this
budget debate, if you listen to what some of the members of Congress
say, you'd think that little of value can ever happen in America unless
the government makes it happen. You'd think that when we return money
to the taxpayers it evaporates into the air.
Let me tell you some of the things $1.6
trillion could mean to the private economy. It could buy 10
million new middle income homes. It could pay the tuitions
of 26 million young people at a private college or university for four
years each. It could purchase 76 million new
automobiles. These are the kinds of things Americans do with
their own money. And there are many others.
Just ask Tommy and Sharen Winfield, for
example. They're watching via closed circuit here from
Atlanta, Georgia. The Winfields have three
children. Tommy has been working as an operating engineer at
Children's Hospital of Atlanta for the past three
years. They pay $1,380 in federal income
taxes. Under my plan, they'd pay nothing.
I first met Tommy a few weeks ago, and we were
having a round-table discussion about tax relief. I asked
him whether he thought the relief would make a difference to his family
-- you see, there are some who say, $1,380, that's nothing, that's not
enough money for anybody.
But let me tell you what Tommy said loud and
clear, and I hope the members of the United States Congress hear
it. Tommy said, sir, if they don't believe you -- meaning,
whether or not tax relief means anything -- then they should just ask
me. One thousand three hundred and eighty dollars means a
lot to Tommy. It means a lot to a lot of folks in America:
those who are struggling with higher energy bills, because we hadn't
had an energy policy; those who have got big credit card debts.
We've got the Brake family with us from
Alexandria, Virginia, Kelly and Pam. One less
son. (Laughter.) They pay $4,000 in federal
income tax. Under my plan, they will save
$1,700. That's real money for this hard-working
couple. They and their two sons, I can assure you, will find
good use for that tax relief. And whatever they do, I
strongly believe they will spend it better and more productively than
the federal government can. (Applause.)
This is an important debate for our
country. It's a debate about how to make sure our economy
continues to grow. But it's really a debate about who do we
trust. Who do those of us who have been honored to serve our
country at the federal level, who do we trust with the people's
money? Do we trust our government, or do we trust the
people? I believe after we meet priorities -- and we meet
priorities by growing the discretionary budget by 4 percent -- that we
always have got to remember whose money it is we're talking
about. It's not the government's money, it's the people's
money. (Applause.)
And we've always got to remember, the role of
government is not to create wealth. It's to create an
environment in which the entrepreneur can flourish, in which the small
business can grow to become a big business. That's the role of
government. And that's why it's vital at this point in
American history that we return money back to the
people. Instead of returning money, we ought not to take it
in the first place, with real meaningful tax
relief. (Applause.)
I've learned that the people can make a big
difference in a lot of debates, particularly the tax relief
debate. We're making some pretty good progress. I
saw a good Democrat Senator out of Georgia, the other day. Max Cleland
said that he is interested in -- when he comes back, interested in
supporting the $1.6 trillion plan. I think that's what he
said. It certainly sounded like it to
me. (Laughter.) And that's a good
sign. I appreciate the Senator going home and listening to
the people.
You see, I think we've finally made the case
that we can meet the obligations of the federal government, that we
don't have to grow at 8 percent in order to meet
obligations. We've also made the case that sending money
back to the people is important for our economy and important for the
American Dream. And I want to thank your help for it.
I want to invite all Americans to take a look
at the budget plan, themselves. You can order the little
book by calling 202-512-1800, and ask for the Citizen's Guide to the
Federal Budget. Or you can download it for free at
www.whitehouse.government.
It's important for you to follow your
government closely. It's important for you to not let the
filter decide what's reality and what's not reality. It's
important to get the facts. And it's always important to
understand that tax relief will stimulate creativity and enterprise for
individual Americans.
I firmly believe tax relief means a better
life in a more prosperous America. So let the members of
Congress know when they come back that you're watching, that you care
for what they do because it will affect your life in a positive way.
I can't thank you all enough for your support,
and I can't thank you enough for letting me come by and make my
case. God bless you all. (Applause.)
END 2:40
P.M. EDT
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