mr. speaker , today we are presented with act ii of the republican majority 's ongoing and tragically misguided reconciliation saga . 
in act i , we learned who the majority felt most deserved to bear the brunt of their spending cuts : poor citizens who rely on medicaid , hungry people who turn to food stamps and families trying to afford college . 
now in act ii we are learning where they propose that money go : for tax breaks , that are targeted primarily to benefit the top 1 % of the wealthiest americans . 
and what is the net result ? 
an even bigger deficit that will have to be paid for by our children . 
let me be clear : in a properly prioritized budget , i believe there is room for targeted , fiscally responsible tax relief . 
and that 's precisely the kind of tax relief democrats are offering in our substitute today . 
the democratic alternative extends all of the tax cuts set to expire next year -- including such items as the deduction for college tuition expenses , incentives for brownfields cleanup and the 15-year depreciation schedule for certain small business expenses . 
moreover , unlike the republican package , democrats provide guaranteed alternative minimum tax relief -- so that 16 million middle-class taxpayers wo n't be unfairly ensnared by the amt . 
finally , and importantly , the democratic substitute is completely paid for -- and wo n't add a dime to the federal deficit . 
by contrast , when considered in its entirety , the republican reconciliation package will actually increase the deficit -- at a time when the nation 's debt is already running over $ 8 trillion . 
additionally , when faced with the choice of whether to use the reconciliation process to protect amt relief for middle-class taxpayers or tax breaks for the wealthiest investors , the republicans chose to leave amt relief unprotected while extending tax -breaks on capital gains and dividends that do n't even expire until 2008 -- tax breaks over half of whose benefits flow to those who made over $ 1 million last year . 
mr. speaker , during a time of war , in the aftermath of a catastrophic hurricane , with 45 million americans lacking health insurance and skyrocketing home heating costs projected this winter , this majority is proposing to take from those with the least , give to those with the most -- and tell our children they will have to pay for it all later . 
mr. speaker , we can do better . 
in fact , i would submit that -- in this season above all seasons -- we are required to do better . 
i urge my colleagues to reject this bill and support the fiscally responsible democratic substitute . 
