You’re Doubly Wrong on Debt and Taxes, Rep. Boebert–And Here’s Why
Ultra-MAGA GOP Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (R-CO) is dead wrong when she claims that more fairly taxing the rich would not reduce debt because we “don’t have a revenue problem” and even if we did, we couldn’t raise “$2 trillion in revenue” from rich taxpayers.
As we recently explained, whether you look short- or long-term the biggest driver of deficits is too little revenue, not too much spending. And that’s because for the past 20 years or so, whenever Republicans like Boebert have had the chance, they’ve cut taxes on the rich and corporations. Cuts initiated by Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump in partnership with Republican Congresses have added over $10 trillion to the pool of red ink—well over half of the debt created this century—while mostly benefiting wealthy people and big businesses.
In the fiscal year that ended this September, the deficit rose because—even though spending declined—revenue declined more. The expiring parts of the 2017 Trump tax law that House Republicans want to permanently extend would add another $3.8 trillion (including higher interest costs) to the nation’s deficits.
As for raising $2 trillion (over 10 years, the standard budgeting increment) from the rich: that’s pretty easy, given the political will. Increasing the corporate tax rate to 28%—just half way back to where it was before the Trump tax law—would get you most of the way by bringing in $1.3 trillion. And make no mistake: when you tax corporations, you’re taxing the rich. The wealthiest 10% of American households own almost 90% of all corporate stock—the top 1%, over half.
You could raise the rest of the $2 trillion—or about $635 billion—with a Millionaires Surtax, a 10-percentage-point increase in existing tax rates on couple’s bringing in $2 million a year or singles bringing in a million. To put those numbers in context, only the highest income earners, or 0.2%, would ever pay the tax.
You could also raise $2.3 trillion with an annual wealth tax of just 2% on household assets worth over $50 million and 5% on those worth over $1 billion. Over 99.9% of Americans would never pay a penny.
There are other combinations of reforms on the taxation of the rich that would raise $2 trillion, such as: imposing fairer taxes on the offshore profits of U.S. corporations ($1 trillion); more realistically taxing the income of billionaires and the other ultra-wealthy ($437 billion); closing a loophole that lets rich business owners dodge healthcare taxes ($306 billion); and taxing wealth more like work by closing loopholes for rich investors ($214 billion).
Most people can’t imagine how much money the mega rich and multinational corporations are hoarding. Billionaires have grown over $2 trillion richer in just the six years since the Trump tax law was enacted. So you’re wrong, Rep. Boebert: we do have a revenue problem—and a practical way of fixing it is with fairer taxes on the rich.