Press Releases
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts today voted in support of an amendment, introduced by John Thune (R-SD), as an alterative to extenders legislation, that cuts taxes, addresses the Medicare physician reimbursement issue, addresses malpractice reform, extends unemployment benefits and cut wasteful stimulus spending without adding to the debt. Senator Roberts is a cosponsor of the amendment.
“The Thune amendment is practically a magic bullet,” Senator Roberts said. “It extends the doc fix and tax relief, it tackles medical malpractice and wasteful stimulus spending while at the same time reducing deficit spending. It is a bold attempt to rein in spending while preserving the tax relief critical to the American economy.”
The amendment failed on a party line vote.
The Thune amendment would have cut taxes by $26 billion by extending current tax relief, cut spending by over $100 billion, and reduced the deficit by $68 billion, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.
The underlying bill increases deficit spending by $55 billion over the next ten years.
“With the national debt exceeding $13 trillion, Kansans have made clear they are concerned about out of control spending,” Senator Roberts said. “This amendment was a commonsense attempt to restore fiscal sanity to Washington.”
Senator Roberts is a member of the Senate Committee on Finance which has jurisdiction on tax matters.
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