Emanuel Statement on AMT: “The Choice is Clear”

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, U.S. Representative Rahm Emanuel (IL-5), released the following statement as delivered on the House floor.

“President Kennedy once said, to govern is to choose.  Both parties are presenting different choices:

“Republicans—Another decade of debt and tax breaks for the well off.

“Democrats—An end to the red ink and middle class tax cuts.
 
“The Republican Congress and President Bush ran up $4 trillion of new debt in the shortest period of time in American history.

“All the while, economic insecurity is at an all-time high for the middle class, incomes are stagnating, and homes are losing their value.

“Since 2000, the cost of health insurance has risen 80%. College costs up 44%. Prices at the pump up 89%.

“Democrats promised to bring tax fairness back to the tax code. We promised to help every American secure the pillars of a middle-class life: raising a family, buying a home, paying for college, and saving for retirement.

“Today, we have a chance to make good on our promises.

“This bill protects 23 million American families from the AMT; gives 30 million homeowners the ability to deduct property taxes; helps 12 million children with a larger tax credit; and provides 4.5 million families help to pay with rising college costs.

“The choice is clear, and the choice is simple.”