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Dear John,
Donald Trump and Joe Biden could not be further apart on Social Security.
It’s pretty simple really. If you want Social Security to be strong, to help support yourself and your loved ones as you reach retirement, and if you believe billionaires should be paying their fair share of taxes to make this happen, then you’ll be behind President Biden and the Democrats.
On the other hand, if you believe the richest of the rich should continue to pay a tiny proportion of their wealth toward the public good, and rest of us should just put up and shut up as Social Security benefits are cut so the wealthy can maintain their unfair tax advantages, then you’ll be backing Trump and the party that’s at his beck and call.
Famously, Warren Buffett has said it’s not right that he pays taxes at a lower rate than his secretary. What you might not be aware of is just how much less Buffett and other billionaires like him are paying.
Median-income Americans pay an effective federal income tax of approximately 13%, but ProPublica found that, between 2014 and 2018, while Buffett’s wealth increased by $24.3 billion, he paid only $23.7 million in taxes on a taxable income of $125 million. This is a rate of just 0.1%.
If this imbalance doesn’t sit right with you, join us in signing this petition, which will be shared with the media, the White House, and allies in Congress:
Donald Trump just told CNBC directly that he is willing to cut Social Security. On March 11, four days after President Biden’s State of the Union address, Trump answered a question about Social Security by saying:
“There is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements in terms of cutting...”
The contrast in President Biden’s speech couldn’t be more stark:
“Anyone here tries to cut Social Security or Medicare or raise the retirement age, I will stop you... We have two ways to go. Republicans can cut Social Security and give more tax breaks to the wealthy, [or] I'll protect and strengthen Social Security and make the wealthy pay their fair share.”
The battle is on, and it’s time to choose sides. I stand with President Biden and the Democrats on Social Security. Join me by signing on now.
Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action
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