Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) issued the following statement at a press conference on the Financial Transaction Tax Bill:

“I want to thank Congressman Keith Ellison for his remarkable work on this important legislation and for his excellent leadership of the Progressive Caucus. Let me also thank all the incredible advocates here today and across the nation who have been organizing and working on this bill including National Nurses United. Thanks for beating the drum!

“It is long past time for Wall Street to pay a financial transaction tax like they did in the 1950’s and 60’s when both the economy and the middle class were growing. More recently though, Wall Street traders gambled the economic future of our entire economy and then they were bailed out by the American people.

“Their out-of-control tactics spread across the world and nearly collapsed the global economy. A small tax on financial transactions will help bring some much-needed fairness to a system that can easily absorb it.  

“Not only do we need the revenue from this small tax to make critical investments in the economic future of all Americans, but specifically, revenue from this tax would also go a long way to increasing our health and development assistance, including securing AIDS medications for the millions of people who still wait in line for access. 

“It's past time for Wall Street to pay their fair share.

“Again, thank you Mr. Ellison for your leadership on this critical issue and I hope that all my colleagues will join us in support of this critical legislation.”