A wealth tax would be good for democracy
The American dream is not just about accumulating private wealth.
In the run-up to the 2020 election, a number of candidates are calling for higher taxes on the wealthy. Among them is Elizabeth Warren, who has proposed adding a tax on wealth—something the US has never had. It’s a recognition that current disparities in wealth are even more severe than disparities in income, and that accumulated wealth bestows its own powerful set of economic advantages. She would impose a 2 percent tax on assets over $50 million, and a 6 percent tax on assets over $1 billion.
Warren’s proposal has sparked debate among economists about its workability and public attacks from billionaires offended by the very idea. JPMorgan Chase executive Jamie Dimon has said the tax “vilifies successful people.” Billionaire investor Leon Cooperman has accused Warren of trying to squash the American dream.
Warren argues that her wealth tax is based not on envy or vilification of the rich but on the realities of interdependence. “You built a great fortune, good for you,” Warren typically says in response. “I guarantee you built it, at least in part, using workers all of us helped pay to educate, getting your goods to market using roads and bridges all of us helped pay to build.” Warren is reminding the wealthy that they too are citizens who have benefited from other people’s labor and the taxes they paid.
