McCarthy: BHS senior Darien Key wins Earl Warren Cup competition

 Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, submits his weekly view from Capitol Hill.

 "This week Bakersfield High School (BHS) held their annual Earl Warren Cup competition.  Jeremy Adams, a civics teacher at BHS created the competition to offer students a fun way to learn about the
Constitution and American government. This year, prior to the competition, Mr. Adams contacted me and requested that I participate in the competition by submitting video clips of myself and other members of Congress by asking questions for the students. I jumped at the opportunity and so did a number of my colleagues including: Sen. John Thune (SD), Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Georgia Rep. John Lewis and Republican Whip Eric Cantor.
  "The winner of this year’s cup was Darien Key, a senior at BHS. Darien won the competition after he correctly identified which constitutional amendment empowers the federal government to collect income taxes.
Darien said the 16th amendment, which was the correct answer. Congratulations to Darien on a job well done!

  "In the House this week the major issue of focus was whether or not Congress should extend the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts. Recently, the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation reported that if the current
tax cuts were allowed to expire, 50% of all small businesses with an annual income above $250,000 would experience higher taxes. Since small businesses create over 70% of all new jobs, an increase of that
size could have a significant negative impact on businesses ability to maintain their current payroll or hire new employees.

  "On Thursday, the Democratic majority passed a bill that failed to extend the current tax rate for all Americans. Instead, what they did do is send a bill to the Senate that if passed in current form, would
create the single largest tax increase in our nation’s history.  At a time when Americans are surrounded by so much economic uncertainty, the last thing Congress should be doing is raising taxes.

  "On another note, I am always looking for ways to improve the lines of communication between constituents and my office.  On Thursday my office announced that we now have an iPhone Application available for
free on iTunes. This new app offers constituents access to all of the services available through my website on their cell phone.  If you  would like to download this service, please visit the iTunes store
online.

‪ "Also, this week my office in Washington was moved to a different building. Our new location is suite 326 in the Cannon House Office Building.  The new office is on the 3rd floor of the Cannon building,
which sits on the east side of the Longworth building. If you are planning to make a trip to Washington D.C. sometime soon and would like to take a tour of the Capitol, please contact my office via the
website (www.kevinmccarthy.house.gov) for more information.