mr. speaker , for years the republican leadership has misled the american public about the estate tax . 
today , because of that deceptive campaign , millions of americans seem to believe they will be subject to the so-called death tax . 
they have been lied to . 
facts are stubborn things , and the facts prove that the republican leadership is once again trying to pass a bill that helps the very wealthy few at the expense of everyone else . 
the truth is that the overwhelming majority of american families , 99.7 percent , are not subject to estate taxes . 
let me repeat : 99.7 percent of american families are not subject to estate taxes . 
the truth is that this is the wrong bill at the wrong time that helps the wrong people , and it should be defeated . 
this permanent repeal of the estate tax does not help the average american . 
instead , it benefits the heirs of the wealthy . 
paris hilton is doing just fine . 
she does not need another tax cut by the republicans . 
my colleague , the gentleman from washington ( mr. hastings ) xz4001711 , will claim that this bill will help family farmers and small business owners pass their assets , their farms and businesses , on to their children . 
the reality is that most of these family farmers and small business owners are already exempt from the estate tax . 
further , as the washington post pointed out today , permanently repealing the estate tax may actually hurt more family farmers and small businesses than it would help because of the cumbersome new reporting requirements and changes in how assets are valued . 
let us look at the facts . 
exempting estates up to $ 1 million , the original level before the 2001 bush tax cut , leaves only the top 2 percent of the estates in the country . 
but current law goes well beyond the $ 1 million exemption ; and to hide the real cost of their bad economic policies , the republican leadership included a provision that sunsets the 2001 tax cut in 2011 . 
mr. speaker , for most of the 20th century , this country operated on a progressive taxation system . 
those who could afford it paid their fair share . 
we looked out for each other . 
we provided food to the hungry , shelter to the homeless , assistance to the unemployed , and health care to the sick . 
but the republican leadership wants to turn that system upside down . 
they believe the wealthy should be exempt from paying taxes and the poor should fend for themselves . 
it is wrong , and we have to stop it . 
let me connect the dots for my republican friends . 
they say there is a deficit and we need to tighten our belts to pay down the debt . 
of course this debt is of their creation . 
president bush came into his first term with a surplus and ended his second term with the largest deficit in the history of the united states of america , and now they bring forward another tax cut that costs $ 290 billion according to the joint committee on taxation . 
some private groups estimate that this bill will ultimately cost closer to $ 1 trillion . 
where is that money going to come from ? 
it is a credit card bill that they are passing on to our children and our grandchildren . 
that is the actual estate tax . 
that is the real legacy they are leaving to future generations . 
mr. speaker , we are at war , but the only people being asked to sacrifice are those who can least afford it . 
the wealthiest of the wealthy are getting a free ride at this very difficult time in our history . 
look at the budget resolution . 
the republican leadership pushed the budget resolution through earlier this month . 
what do they do ? 
they cut food stamps . 
they cut medicaid . 
they cut education programs . 
they cut environmental protection . 
they cut community development block grants . 
they cut school breakfasts and school lunches . 
why ? 
all so a few people can inherit a few more billion dollars tax free from their relatives . 
our colleague from north dakota ( mr. pomeroy ) xz4003230 will offer an amendment that will set the exemption for estates at $ 3 million for individuals and $ 7 million for couples . 
this would cost dramatically less than the republican bill , $ 72 billion compared to $ 290 billion , and it would exempt 99.7 percent of all estates from ever facing the estate tax . 
this is a commonsense compromise that should receive near unanimous support . 
mr. speaker , the truth is out there , but the republican leadership is too stubborn and too arrogant to face it . 
we are at war . 
health care costs are spiraling out of control . 
poverty in america is increasing . 
more americans go to bed hungry at night . 
our children are falling behind in math and science . 
i , for one , do not believe the answer to these challenges is a permanent repeal of the estate tax . 
i urge my colleagues to do the right thing and defeat this bill . 
mr. speaker , i reserve the balance of my time . 
