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Sen. Mel Martinez

October 19, 2007

‘An effective voice for our party’



Washington, D.C. –U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following statement Friday regarding RNC General Chairman, Senator Mel Martinez:



“Mel has served as an effective voice for our party, and we appreciate his success in communicating the Republican agenda of strong national and economic security. He is a respected member of our conference and will continue to play an important role in the Senate and through his continued service to the people of Florida.”



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McConnell Praises Announcement of Additional Sanctions Against Burma

October 19, 2007



Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell released the following statement Friday on the President’s announcement of additional sanctions against Burma:



“This afternoon, the President demonstrated his leadership in promoting democratic change in Burma. By increasing sanctions against the State Peace and Development Council, the President put the military junta on notice that the United States stands squarely with the Burmese people and at the forefront of the international effort to effect change in the troubled country.”



BACKGROUND:

Earlier this year, the Senate passed and the President signed into law legislation authored by Senators McConnell and Dianne Feinstein to renew sanctions against the Burmese government. “The Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act” includes an import ban on Burmese goods entering the U.S. and authorizes visa restrictions on officials from the regime -- the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC).



The McConnell/Feinstein legislation maintains sanctions on the regime until changes are taken by the SPDC – changes that include taking concrete steps toward reconciliation and democratization, such as the full, unfettered participation of the National League for Democracy and ethnic minorities in the political affairs of the country, and the immediate, unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi.



This is the fifth consecutive year that Senators McConnell and Feinstein have worked together to extend the annual ban on imports from Burma.



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Republican Senators Call for Immediate Reform of AMT

October 18, 2007

McConnell: ‘Fix this middle-class tax grab’

Washington, D.C. -- Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee Charles Grassley, Senator Gordon Smith (R.-Ore.), and Senator Mike Crapo (R.-Idaho) held a press conference Wednesday urging immediate action to reform the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).

“If Congress does not take action to correct, or in my preference to repeal, AMT before the end of 2007, upwards of 20 million middle-income households will find themselves paying AMT,” said Sen. Smith.

Because the AMT was not indexed for inflation, it attacks more and more middle-income families every year.

“Since the AMT was never intended to reach to the extent that it reaches, and Congress never intended this tax to be collected from so many Americans, we should not subject this tax to the paygo rules,” said Sen. Crapo. “At the very least we need the AMT patch that’s been used in recent years to protect taxpayers,” said Sen. Grassley. “Even so, this falls short of what Democrats pledged to do to fix the AMT problem when they took over in January.”

The most recent patch expired last year, leaving millions of families vulnerable to AMT if another is not added. “If we don’t act soon, about 25.7 million families and individuals will be hit with a very unpleasant surprise next year to the tune of about $65 billion in taxes,” said McConnell.

“We have a very difficult situation building in our tax code right now,” warned Sen. Crapo. “We need immediate action, we need solid and decisive action.”

According to the Congressional Research Service, 168,000 Kentucky taxpayers will be subject to AMT if Congress fails to act soon.

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