WASHINGTON, April 1 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is a Radio Address By
President Bush to the Nation:
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. As tax day approaches later this month,
many American families are now finishing their tax returns. And as you do, an
important debate is taking place in Washington that will affect the amount you
will pay in the years ahead.
I believe our economy grows when you're allowed to keep more of your hard-
earned money and make your own decisions about how to save, spend, and invest.
So, working with Congress, we've provided tax relief for all Americans who pay
income taxes. We lowered tax rates to let workers keep more of their
paychecks. We doubled the child tax credit and reduced the marriage penalty,
and we put the death tax on the road to extinction. We also cut taxes on
dividends and capital gains and expanded incentives for small businesses to
invest so they could grow and create new jobs.
Since 2001, the tax relief we delivered has left $880 billion in the hands
of American workers, and small businesses, and families like yours, and you
used that money to help produce more than four years of uninterrupted economic
growth. Last year, our economy grew at a healthy 3.5 percent, faster than any
other major industrialized nation.
One politician in Washington said in 2003 that our tax cuts were "ruining
our economy and costing us jobs." The truth is that since August 2003,
America has added almost 5 million new jobs. Our unemployment rate is now 4.8
percent -- lower than the average of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Real after-
tax income is up 8 percent per person since the beginning of 2001. More
Americans now own their own homes than at any time in our history, and
minority homeownership is at record levels. Consumer confidence is at its
highest level in nearly four years. Productivity has grown strongly over the
past five years, and our small business sector is thriving.
The evidence is overwhelming: The opponents of tax cuts were wrong. Tax
relief has helped to create jobs and opportunities for American families, and
it's helped our economy grow. By maintaining our pro-growth economic policies
and practicing spending restraint in Washington, we can keep our economy
growing and stay on track to meet our goal of cutting the budget deficit in
half by 2009.
The problem is that the tax relief we passed is set to expire over the
next few years. Some Democrats in Washington are insisting that we let that
happen -- or even repeal the tax cuts now. In either case, that would weaken
our economy and would leave American families with a big tax hike that they do
not expect and will not welcome. Because America needs more than a temporary
economic expansion, we need more than temporary tax relief. To keep our
economy growing, to keep our businesses investing, and to keep creating jobs,
we need to ensure that you keep more of what you earn -- so Congress needs to
make the tax relief permanent.
Making tax relief permanent includes extending the tax cuts on dividends
and capital gains. These tax cuts have been vital to our economic growth. By
lowering the cost of capital, this tax relief has given businesses an
incentive to invest and expand, and that has helped create jobs and
opportunity. I urge the Congress to extend these pro-growth tax cuts, so our
businesses can plan with confidence and keep creating jobs for American
workers.
The debate in Congress over taxes ultimately comes down to this: Who
knows best how to use your money -- the politicians in Washington or you? I
believe the money we spend in Washington is your money, not the government's
money. I trust you to make the best decisions about what to do with your
hard-earned dollars, because when you do, your family is better off, our
economy grows, and prosperity and opportunity spread throughout our great
land.
Thank you for listening.
END
SOURCE White House Press Office
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