<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML xmlns:w = "http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/word/2003/wordml" xmlns:o =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:v =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" XMLNS:WX =
"http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/word/2003/auxHint" xmlns:aml =
"http://schemas.microsoft.com/aml/2001/core" xmlns:w10 =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word"><HEAD><TITLE> ?letterdate ?</TITLE>
<META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.19394"><![if !supportAnnotations]
>
<STYLE id=dynCom type=text/css></STYLE>
<MailScannerScript5735 SCRIPT language=JavaScript><!--
function msoCommentShow(anchor_id, com_id)
{
if(msoBrowserCheck())
{
c = document.getElementById(com_id);
a = document.getElementById(anchor_id);
if (null != c && null == c.length && null != a && null == a.length)
{
var cw = c.offsetWidth;
var ch = c.offsetHeight;
var aw = a.offsetWidth;
var ah = a.offsetHeight;
var x = a.offsetLeft;
var y = a.offsetTop;
var el = a;
while (el.tagName != "BODY")
{
el = el.offsetParent;
x = x + el.offsetLeft;
y = y + el.offsetTop;
}
var bw = document.body.clientWidth;
var bh = document.body.clientHeight;
var bsl = document.body.scrollLeft;
var bst = document.body.scrollTop;
if (x + cw + ah / 2 > bw + bsl && x + aw - ah / 2 - cw >= bsl )
{ c.style.left = x + aw - ah / 2 - cw; }
else
{ c.style.left = x + ah / 2; }
if (y + ch + ah / 2 > bh + bst && y + ah / 2 - ch >= bst )
{ c.style.top = y + ah / 2 - ch; }
else
{ c.style.top = y + ah / 2; }
c.style.visibility = "visible";
} } }
function msoCommentHide(com_id)
{
if(msoBrowserCheck())
{
c = document.getElementById(com_id);
if (null != c && null == c.length)
{
c.style.visibility = "hidden";
c.style.left = -1000;
c.style.top = -1000;
} }
}
function msoBrowserCheck()
{
ms = navigator.appVersion.indexOf("MSIE");
vers = navigator.appVersion.substring(ms + 5, ms + 6);
ie4 = (ms > 0) && (parseInt(vers) >= 4);
return ie4;
}
if (msoBrowserCheck())
{
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomanchor","background: infobackground");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomoff","display: none");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","visibility: hidden");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","position: absolute");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","top: -1000");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","left: -1000");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","width: 33%");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","background: infobackground");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","color: infotext");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","border-top: 1pt solid threedlightshadow");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","border-right: 2pt solid threedshadow");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","border-bottom: 2pt solid threedshadow");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","border-left: 1pt solid threedlightshadow");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","padding: 3pt 3pt 3pt 3pt");
document.styleSheets.dynCom.addRule(".msocomtxt","z-index: 100");
}
--></MailScannerScript5735>
<![endif]
><!--[if !mso]
><style>
/*vml*/
v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
w10\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
</style
><![endif]-->
<STYLE><!--
/*font definitions*/
@font-face{font-family:"Times New Roman";panose-1:2 2 6 3 5 4 5 2 3 4;}@font-face{font-family:"Cambria Math";panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;}@font-face{font-family:"Tahoma";panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;}@font-face{font-family:"sbd067";panose-1:0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;}@font-face{font-family:"sbc067";panose-1:0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;}
/*element styles*/
del {text-decoration:line-through;color:red;}
ins {text-decoration:underline;color:teal;}
a:link {color:blue;text-decoration:underline;text-underline:single;}
a:visited {color:purple;text-decoration:underline;text-underline:single;}
/*class styles*/
.Normal-P{
margin-left:0pt;margin-right:0pt;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";}
.Normal-H{font-size: 10pt;font-family:Times New Roman;}
.DefaultParagraphFont-H{}
.TableNormal-T{} .TableNormal-R{} .TableNormal-C{vertical-align:top;font-family:Times New Roman;} .Header-P{
margin-left:0pt;margin-right:0pt;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";}
.Header-H{font-size: 10pt;font-family:Times New Roman;font-family:Times New Roman;}
.Footer-P{
margin-left:0pt;margin-right:0pt;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";}
.Footer-H{font-size: 10pt;font-family:Times New Roman;font-family:Times New Roman;}
.PageNumber-H{}
.BalloonText-P{
margin-left:0pt;margin-right:0pt;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";}
.BalloonText-H{font-size: 10pt;font-family:Times New Roman;font-family:Tahoma;font-size:8pt;}
/*sections*/
@page Section1{size:612pt 792pt;margin:72pt 72pt 90pt 72pt;} div.Section1{page:Section1;}
--></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message -----
<DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A
title=senator@cardin.senate.gov href="mailto:senator@cardin.senate.gov">Senator
Ben Cardin - Do not reply to this message</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=kenneth.chrane@verizon.net
href="mailto:kenneth.chrane@verizon.net">kenneth.chrane@verizon.net</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Friday, January 18, 2013 2:56 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: Mail from website</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV class=Section1>
<P class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Dear </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Mr.
Chrane:</SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P style="TEXT-INDENT: 36pt" class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Thank you for
contacting me with your views on the "fiscal cliff." I agree with you that the
scheduled middle class tax increases and across-the-board spending cuts that
made up the cliff would have led to long-term instability for American families
and businesses. I am pleased that Congress came together in a bipartisan fashion
to pass legislation to avoid these negative consequences. At the same time I am
disappointed the agreement is limited in scope.</SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P style="TEXT-INDENT: 36pt" class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P style="TEXT-INDENT: 36pt" class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">The </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-STYLE: italic; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">American Taxpayer Relief
Act</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">, which became law on January 2, 2013,
kept income taxes low for the middle class and is expected to grow the economy.
Specifically, this Act kept tax rates low on every family's income below
$450,000. It also permanently fixed the Alternative Minimum Tax so that it only
applies to the upper income taxpayer, as intended when such tax was enacted.
Additionally, the Act extended important anti-poverty tax provisions for
low-income Americans. On the spending side, the Act included a two month
postponement of "sequestration"—the $1.2 trillion in automatic </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">across-the-board spending cuts that were to take effect
on January 1, 2013—which was</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"> paid for by a
combination of revenue and spending cuts.</SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">I am hopeful that
Congress will work together in the coming weeks and months to pass a larger
budget agreement that will put us on a path to a sustainable budget. I believe
we need to take a balanced approach with respect to spending reductions and
revenue increases in order to get our nation back on a more fiscally sustainable
track. I also believe that a deficit reduction plan should focus on protecting
the middle class, eliminating government waste, fostering growth, and investing
in our industries</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">.</SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P style="PAGE-BREAK-AFTER: avoid" class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Please be assured
that as a member of the Senate Finance Committee, I will continue to work to
address these issues. </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Thank you again
for taking the time to share your views with me and please do not hesitate to
contact me in the future regarding this or any other matter of interest to
you. </SPAN></SPAN> </P>
<P style="PAGE-BREAK-AFTER: avoid" class=Normal-P><SPAN class=Normal-H><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"></SPAN></SPAN> </P></DIV><BR>Please visit my website at
<A
href="http://cardin.senate.gov/contact/newsletter/">http://cardin.senate.gov/contact/newsletter/</A>
to sign up for my e-newsletter. </BODY></HTML>