Washington, DC — 60 Plus Association’s dynamic and forever young Honorary Chairman, Roger Zion (R-IN, 1967-75), 84 years old going on 44, moved back to Evansville, Indiana to take life a bit easier. Instead he wrote his fourth book, The Amazing Adventures of Congressman Roger Zion. His previous books were: Keys to Human Relations in Selling, The Hallowed Howls of Congress and The Republican Challenge.

The senior Senator from Indiana, Richard Lugar, wrote the foreword to Roger’s new book. As was the case for his second book, The Hallowed Howls of Congress, Roger did not do an index, prompting Bob Dole to exclaim that you have to read the whole book if you want to discover what Roger has to say about you.

The reception on October 26th at the Capitol Hill Club was the 60 Plus Association’s way to pay tribute to Roger Zion.

Some great stories in Roger’s new book include when President George H. W. Bush came to the Members gym to play paddleball. (The President was a classmate of Roger’s, both elected to the House in 1966, the 90th Congress.) On a disputed foul line shot by the President, Roger shouted “Out.” The President retorted: “If you think that’s out, ask the guys with guns on their hips if it’s out.” Roger promptly gave a “safe” call.

When then Rep. Billy Tauzin of Louisiana introduced Roger to Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, former Governor of Wisconsin, Tauzin called Roger the “worst paddleball player in the gym,” to which Roger retorted. “I beat your (censored).”

But the best may be the reference to Roger’s charging Jane Fonda with treason in 1969 and his subpoena for Fonda to appear before the House Internal Security Committee. The Democrats’ reaction? They abolished the Committee! That’s real hardball.

-30-

Arlington, VA – Pat Boone cranked out his first No. 1 hit record — a cover of Fats Domino’s “Ain’t That a Shame” — in 1955. He’s been at it ever since, notching 61 hits and earning himself a spot on Billboard magazine’s list of the top 10 best-selling recording artists of all time.

Jim Martin, head honcho of national seniors’ group 60 Plus, was effusive in his praise of Boone who became the group’s national spokesperson in 2003. “I couldn’t be more proud of Pat’s accomplishment as a milestone showman if he were my own son! 50 years in any business — but especially 50 years in the cut throat music and entertainment field — is a feat very few can lay claim to. And to be clear, Pat’s anything but done; he’s as active in music as he’s ever been and still creating fine tunes today.”

For his 50th anniversary as a chart-topper, Boone decided he wanted to reach for something that had never before accomplished: hitting six different Billboard charts with releases as varied as Latin love songs, R&B “groovy goodies”, an ode to the wildly-popular NASCAR auto racing circuit and a tribute to the Rev. Billy Graham that features U2’s lead man, Bono.

And it’s likely he’ll pull it off.

He’s already started, with an album of patriotic tunes and military anthems titled “American Glory,” and a country album he chose to call “Ready to Rock.”

Noting that country artists such as Brooks & Dunn and Big & Rich “are rockin’ like crazy,” Boone says, “People forget that I started out as a rock ‘n’ roller.”

The first single, “What One Night Can Do,” was recorded with Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles and Danny Hutton of Three Dog Night on backing vocals. The disc also contains “NASCAR Time,” the video for which is already playing on racetrack Jumbotron screens everywhere.

Next is the gospel album, “Glory Train: The Lost Sessions,” with the all-star tribute track, “Thank you, Billy Graham.” The song features contributions by Bono, Leann Rimes, Larry King, Michael McDonald, Jeffrey Osborne, Kenny Rogers, DC Talk, Marty Stuart, Andre Crouch and more than a half-dozen others.

“After Princess Diana died and Elton John reworked his ‘Candle in the Wind’ and it became the biggest-selling single ever, I thought ‘What’s gonna happen when Billy Graham slips upstairs?’” Boone explains. Irked that media attention toward Diana’s death eclipsed coverage of Mother Teresa’s passing, Boone worried that a similar event might pre-empt “the kind of respect, the tribute that Billy Graham deserves.”

The rest of the album was recorded 20 years ago, but never released. Then the master tapes that had been thought lost were recently rediscovered by producer Ray Ruff in his attic and the pair decided the time was right for these songs to be heard.

Lucky timing played a part in getting Bono involved as well. Boone hooked up with the rock star at a Grammy party.

“I was walking into this party at MCA/Universal, and I was walking in behind the band, and I said, loud enough for them to hear, ‘I think it’s time Boone-o met Bono.’ And he turned around, stopped his group, and said, ‘We met before.’ My jaw dropped and I said, ‘We did?’ And he said ‘Yeah, we were just a starting group and when you were on tour, we were introduced to you. We were glad to meet you, you were very nice, very encouraging to us. We didn’t expect you to remember, but we do.’

Later, Boone asked if he’d like to participate in the tribute, and Bono agreed, saying he was an admirer of Graham.

“I didn’t realize that was an act of courage on his part,” Boone says, noting Bono’s an Irish Catholic celebrating a Protestant minister — a tough position to take in his country.

Proceeds from sales of the song will go to Samaritan’s Purse and Mercy Corps, two hunger relief organizations.

Following that album is a disc full of love songs, “Hopeless Romantic.”

“In each of these areas, I’ve had success in the past,” Boone says. The ballad-heavy album includes a song he wrote with guitar great Chet Atkins, “Waltz for the Lonely,” which includes Atkins’ last recorded performance before his death. Another song, co-written with Paul Williams, was a 50th-anniversary present to Boone’s wife, Shirley. It’s called, “You Make My Life a Love Song.” He also covers Michael Jackson’s “She’s Out of My Life,” and the Four Tops tune, “Still Waters Run Deep.” That’s the single, which is already getting airplay.

The fifth album, a twist on the Frank Sinatra “Duets” concept, features covers of R&B classics recorded with their original performers. It’s called “We Are Family” and includes appearances by Smokey Robinson (on “Tears of a Clown”), the Four Tops (“I Can’t Help Myself”), Kool & the Gang (“Celebration”), KC & the Sunshine Band (“Get Down Tonight”), Sam Moore (“Soul Man”), Sister Sledge (on the title tune), Earth, Wind & Fire (“That’s the Way of the World”), Ray Parker Jr. (“A Woman Needs Love”) and, for what Boone calls the piece de resistance, James Brown doing “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag.” It’s also got a hip-hop song Boone wrote himself, which features rapping by Kool Moe D. The album originally was conceived as a follow-up to Boone’s successful 1997 release, “In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy,” his tongue-in-cheek collection of hard rockers.

Album No. 6, “Latin Love,” will be the first release on the new Latin division of Boone’s Gold label. And for good measure, he’s releasing a disc of Celtic tunes recorded for his

summer 2005 Ireland tour.

Boone’s calling this effort “my big finale, a musical fireworks display,” and insists he intends to stop touring next year — though he knows better than to say “never.”

“If something comes up that I need to do after that, of course I can do it,” he says. “But I do consider this just a giant thanks and farewell.”

Whether he puts away those white bucks for good or not, Boone’s releases still stand to make quite an explosion. Don’t cover your ears, though; you need to hear these sounds from one of America’s greatest musical icons.

-30-

Arlington, VA — I believe the Senate was wise to postpone a vote on repeal of the death tax.

But it’s a shame that the terrible Katrina tragedy is being used by the big-spending and big-taxing crowd as an excuse to avoid abolishing a tax harmful to small businesses — the so-called Death Tax — whose repeal would provide immediate and long-term relief to those impacted by this disaster.

Make no mistake, repeal of the death tax is not, I repeat, not a tax cut for the “wealthiest of the wealthy” as Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) describes it, or as her husband called it, a “windfall for the wealthy.” Both Clintons know their position is a con job of the first order. Both know the “wealthiest of the wealthy” don’t pay this confiscatory tax. Either that or they’re both stupid.

Instead, it’s small businesses — that provide over 80% of the jobs in America — and farmers that are hurt. The “wealthiest of the wealthy” set up trusts and foundations. Ever heard of the Hilton Foundation, Rockefeller, Gates, Heinz, Soros Foundations? I could go on but you get the picture.

Self-described “unrequited liberal” Edward McCaffery, a USC professor, calls the death tax a tax that liberals should oppose because of its negative impact, that it’s anti-business expansion and rebuilding businesses and starting new ones is what is seriously needed now in the aftermath of Katrina. To those who lose their jobs due to loss of a business, that’s a tax of 100% on the worker.

Since 1994 in the 103rd Congress, the 60 Plus Association and the National Tax Limitation Committee have delivered thousands of petitions urging Congress to kill the death tax.

It’s not a revenue raiser, it’s a revenue loser or at best, revenue neutral, due to collection and compliance costs. It’s anti-savings. To quote Milton Friedman, “because of the death tax, there’s little need to save, you might as well spend your money on wine, women and song as to save it.” Of course, he’s right. How terrible is it that the first in line when a loved one dies is Uncle Sam, not even a blood relative?

Since coming to the nation’s capital as a young reporter in 1962 when John F. Kennedy was in the White House, I’ve seen a lot of taxes come but not many go. Here’s a tax whose time to go has surely come. It’s been enacted, and repealed, three times. A fourth and final repeal is long overdue.

In the Senate, the high-water mark to repeal was 57-43 but because of the filibuster threat, it takes 60 votes. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) is to be commended for calling for an up or down vote on repeal, resisting the admonition of the “deal makers and the compromisers” who somehow didn’t seem to get the message sent to them by the House, “Kill The Death Tax, Don’t Wound It.”

As the person credited with popularizing the term “death tax” for the estate tax, I will not be ready to retire until this tax is permanently killed. In my 40-plus years in the nation’s capitol, first as a newspaper reporter and now as an activist on behalf of seniors, I’ve seen a lot of taxes come but not many go. This is a tax whose time to go has surely come.

It serves no useful purpose. It’s not a revenue raiser, it’s a revenue loser. It’s not a tax cut for the rich, they don’t pay it. It enriches only lawyers, accountants and insurance brokers. It’s a hindrance to job expansion. It discourages savings. It encourages consumption. It hurts newly emerging minority owned businesses. Death tax repeal is bi-partisan. The death tax deserves to die.

To paraphrase Milton Friedman, Nobel Laureate economist, “Because of the death tax, there’s little need to save, you may as well spend your money on wine, women and song as to save it.” Friedman is absolutely right. How disgusting is it that the first claimant in line when a loved one dies is Uncle Sam, not even a blood relative?

To those in the Senate who say the compromise they’re crafting could be lost by insistence on a vote to repeal, I say to the “House of Lords” please be so kind, so ever benevolent, as to look at what your brethren did in the “House of Commons.” They passed absolute repeal neither by a razor-thin nor a party line vote but by a whopping 110 vote bi-partisan margin, 272-162, with over 40 Democrats and 7 members of the Congressional Black Caucus voting for outright repeal. As a matter of fact, caucus member Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-GA) said it best, “I believe the death tax is politically misguided, morally unjustifiable and downright un-American.”

Why in heaven’s name cannot the Senate stop tinkering with this abomination of a tax and simply do the right thing? Repeal it.

You will not be tagged with “helping the rich” because the so-called rich don’t pay

it — they set up trusts and foundations.

And to those cute wordsmiths who call repeal of the death tax the “Paris Hilton Relief Act”, have they never heard of the Hilton Foundation? What an insult to hard working small businesses, and to seniors who have accumulated substantial wealth after a lifetime of hard work and savings.

The 60 Plus Association has contracted for two polls that produced similar results: one by a 77% margin, the other by 73%, both concluding that Americans would be “more likely to vote for their Member of Congress if they voted to eliminate the death tax.” Those polled cited the unfairness of a tax on after-tax assets. The bottom line is voting to repeal this tax is a winner, and it has steamrolled otherwise popular legislators who dared get in the way of its permanent elimination. But don’t believe me…ask former Senator Tom Daschle (D-SD).

The 2006 mid-term elections are not far off. Were I in either the House or the Senate, I’d be particularly mindful of being on the wrong side of death tax repeal.

Clear-thinking Americans understand what Professor Edward McCaffery, the self-described “unrequited liberal” who now favors abolition of the tax, has said, “…to most people, death seems like the wrong time to tax.”

Over the years, in an effort to shame Congress into repealing it, more than 40 names have been suggested for this tax, some of them macabre but succinct. A few: Grave Robber’s Tax, Exit Tax, Cruel Tax, Success Tax, Pine Box Tax, Tombstone Tax, Feet First Tax, Soul Tax, Stiffest Tax of All and the Last Grasp Tax.

Our battle cry at 60 Plus has always been “Dying should not be a taxable event.”

__________________

James L. Martin is the president of the 60 Plus Association, a grass-roots seniors group headquartered in Arlington, VA.

Arlington, VA — “On behalf of the 60 Plus Association and senior citizens all across America, I am calling upon the 109th Congress to do what should have been done decades ago — the immediate and total repeal of the highly regressive ‘tax on talking’.

“This outdated tax is unnecessary; it hurts the poor and disadvantaged and is certainly an impediment to senior citizens, especially those on fixed incomes.

“Look at your next phone bill. The ‘Federal excise tax’ is the smokescreen tax imposed to pay for the Spanish-American War 107 years ago. At risk of sounding ridiculous, that war is not only long over but long since paid for… however, like any tax levy, the tax burden has never gone away!

“The Spanish-American War was waged at a time when telephones were considered an extravagance and as is always the case, the “rich” were taxed for this luxury. Can any clear thinking person today consider the ubiquitous telephones, cell phones or internet access we enjoy — as a “luxury” or something only enjoyed by the so-called “rich”? Of course not. Everyone pays this tax, but the heaviest burden falls on the least-able.

“This 107 year-old tax must go. The 60 Plus Association calls for its permanent repeal immediately — or until such time as the Spanish-American War flares up again. As a personal aside, my recently-deceased stepfather who passed on at a remarkable 105 years of age, quipped to me once how he’s been paying this tax 85 years! He said, ‘Jim, all those dollars could have paid for a lot of prescription drugs’ and he’s certainly right about that!

“In 2000, legislation offered by former Congressman Rob Portman (R-OH) and the recently deceased Robert Matsui (D-CA) to repeal the tax on talking, ultimately was vetoed by then President Clinton. That was a shame, for it was a true bi-partisan effort with repeal embraced by the overwhelming majority in the House 420-2. Today, I’d think H.R. 1898 offers a chance for Congress to pass legislation supported by both sides of the political spectrum, void of all the partisan rancor so common on the Hill today. In that regard, 60 Plus commends Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) for following the lead of the House and offering legislation for that body, also.

“We at 60 Plus support H.R. 1898 in the name of tax fairness. Further, I congratulate Americans for Tax Reform for leading this most recent charge to abolish this tax.”