Washington, DC –
U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) released the following statement in response to reports that a minority of senators may block extending tax cuts for middle-class Americans:

“Middle-class Americans are still hurting from our recession and, as the president said, the recovery has been painfully slow. This is not the time to block the extension of tax cuts for the middle class just to protect the very wealthiest of Americans.

“I urge my colleagues to set aside their partisan differences and act on behalf of America’s families.
  We cannot afford to let these tax cuts expire and effectively reduce the wages of middle-class families at such a time when every dollar is stretched to make ends meet.
  We also cannot hold the vast majority of American families hostage just to provide $700 billion in tax cuts to the top three percent of wage earners – those who make more than $250,000 a year in taxable income.”