|
Dear John,
How do billionaires get away with paying a lower effective tax rate than working class Americans?
One explanation: Trump’s tax cuts for the rich.
Another: We don’t tax wealth.
While workers live off paychecks that are taxed, people like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk don’t. They live off their wealth, which is mostly tied up in the value of stocks.
Unless they sell off those stocks, their taxable income is small. But they don't have to sell in order to reap benefits.
In this week’s video, we talk about this other way the ultra-rich finance their extravagant lifestyles, that’s not available to you or me. Come join the discussion, and share with your friends!
Billionaires -- unlike those of us without enormous wealth -- can use their massive portfolios as collateral to borrow the money they need to finance their lifestyles. And the interest rates they pay for these loans is much lower than the rates they’d pay on capital gains or income taxes.
And how much of these low interest payments goes to the common good? The answer is zero. The government does not tax loans. The interest goes to the banks and the billionaires who run them.
Should billionaires be allowed to get away with this scheme? Absolutely not.
If we want the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share, we’ve got to tax their wealth -- not just their income.
We need a wealth tax. Now.
And thank you for passing along this video!
Robert Reich
Inequality Media
|
