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Senator Murray offer compromise bill, Republicans object
(Washington,
D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray went to the floor of the U.S Senate to
make a final attempt at brokering a bi-partisan compromise on the extension of
the critical sales tax deduction before the Senate recessed through November.
Murray has been working for months to pass this legislation, and her most
recent attempt was blocked
by Senate Republicans last Thursday.
Today,
Murray offered a stand-alone one-year extension of the sales tax deduction that
was based on the same bill that Senate Republicans had offered on Monday,
but Senate Republicans led by Senator John Thune (R-SD) objected.
Senator
Murray issued the following statement after Republican blocked her compromise
bill:
“This
display by Senate Republicans is partisan politics and political gamesmanship
at its absolute worst.
“I
reached across the aisle to bring forward a compromise bill that would help
families in Washington state—and that Senate Republicans had agreed to just two
nights ago—but they stood up and said no.
“I
was willing to do whatever it took tonight to get this sales tax deduction
extended for Washington state families, but Senate Republicans refused to put
politics aside and give an inch.
“I
am going to keep fighting to get this done, but I am deeply disappointed that
Senate Republicans continue to treat this issue as an election year game when
families across my home state of Washington are counting on us to get something
done.”
The
full text of Senator Murray’s speech offering the compromise follows:
“Mr.
President, I have been working hard over the past few months to extend the
critical sales tax deduction for families and small businesses in my home state
of Washington.
“I
know how important this is to middle class families in my state—and I have
heard from so many of them about how vital it is that this deduction be
extended.
“But
every time we brought forward a bill that would help these families,
Republicans would band together to block it.
“They
would stand here on this floor and say they objected to the way we paid for
this deduction.
“Or
they would say they didn’t like some of the other tax cut extensions we
included in the bill.
“They
would give different reasons each time, but they refused to come to the table
with real solutions for this serious issue facing middle class families.
“Mr.
President, I urged Senate Republicans to change their minds.
“But
again and again they blocked these common-sense tax cut extensions.
“Finally,
Mr. President—on Monday night, Senate Republicans came forward with a proposal.
“Their
bill came at the 11th hour and it stripped away all of the other tax
credits that would help families, clean energy companies, and small
businesses.
“So
Senator Baucus objected to it, because he wanted to focus on a tax cut
extension bill we had been working on for months that already had the support
of the majority of the Senate.
“But
extending the sales tax deduction is too important to Washington state families
to let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
“So
over the last two days I talked to my colleagues about this.
“I
made sure they understood that this issue is about more than the political
back-and-forth here in D.C.—it’s about real people back in my home state of
Washington…
“It’s
about removing a bias in the tax code that is fundamentally unfair to our
families…
“And
it’s about putting more money in their pockets at a time when they could use
all the help they can get.
“So
Mr. President—I am here to say that after these conversations with my colleagues
on the Democratic side, they have agreed to set aside their objections and
allow the sales tax deduction extension to pass today.
“Because
this issue shouldn’t be controversial, and the livelihoods of middle class
families shouldn’t be used as a political football in election year games.
“So
in a few minutes I will ask unanimous consent to pass a bill that pulls the
sales tax exemption out of the legislation we had it in before, which will
allow it to stand alone, and is what Republicans offered to pass on Monday
night.
“With
one small compromise— and it is so close to the version Republicans offered on
Monday night that I cannot imagine they would object to it now.
“Rather
than the permanent extension that I and so many others would prefer, this bill
would extend the sales tax exemption for one year, offering greater stability
and confidence for middle class families in these tough times.
“I
believe this is a reasonable compromise. And I believe it can and should
pass here today.
“Mr.
President—I was proud to work with my colleagues to put politics aside and
advance this proposal that will help people and solve problems for Washington
state families.
“And
I really hope Republicans are truly interested in helping families more than
playing political games, and that they don’t come up with a new reason to object
to this bill tonight.”
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