they can afford everything else..

Time to stop the flow of money out of our pockets and into theirs.

what little income being generated off these assets on a yearly basis is tiny. A worldwide wealth tax is needed. No more games. No more tax accountants. No more legal maneuvers behind LLCs or shells of companies in offshore locations to avoid and/or hide assets. No more suing each other (LLCs vs. LLCs) and then paying off each other to 'hide' transfers of cash etc. among themselves.

The IRS has a bounty system on if taxes are recovered, a 10% bounty may be paid. This (if it has not been scrapped by now) needs to be increased or made more robust so these 'escaped tax revenues' can be recaptured. Probably hundreds of billions of dollars are hidden this way, maybe even more.

Remember, guess who picks up the slack and has to pay for debt further down the road? US!

an effective wealth tax. Sadly it may actually require worldwide implementation to be effective. Chances of that?

country, state against state, etc. all in a feeble attempt to capture that tiny bit of tax revenue. In effect pitting us against ourselves. Time to stop, time to start addressing the worldwide huge income and wealth inequity. Now don't get me wrong, but just how much is too much? Really, how much is too much?

That question was asked to Rockefeller,
his response was "Just one more dollar."

to FDR and good things resulted. Cutting taxes for the rich and blowing up the deficit started with reagan, bush 1, bush ll & trump. I have waited since reagan for the tide to turn.

in the world easily.

When we look at the countries that make it work, like the Nordic countries, one thing they do that we do NOT do is tax EVERYONE something. We have a large percentage of the workforce here that pay NO income taxes. Yes, they pay SS, but NIT income taxes. And if they get EIC then they're paying less than zero. Not to mention the money earned that never gets taxed period.A TON of that money. "Stated income" folks.
A consumption tax is the only way any "new" tax will actually raise the type of money we need for the programs people say they want.

When the tax was 90%, instead of taking higher taxable compensation, those corporation’s boards made other decisions... to invest in infrastructure and labor costs ... not stuffing the exec’s pockets full of money that could never be spent.

And again, raise the rates to whatever you like, there still wont be NEARLY enough new money to pay for any of the programs that we want. Its just not there. When the top 20% are already paying nearly 90% of the income tax revenue, its just not going to get a lot of extra money
The total reported income in this country is around 10-11 trillion a year. We're already spending 40+% of that. Now the "unreported income" is a totally different number.
I dont really care of a consumption tax is regressive; send out a check of some size to those below "X" dollars of income. That'll level it out a bit. But I know SO many people who are stated income folks who NEVER claim their actual earnings. Many of them are pretty wealthy IMO. Sales tax is the only way to get EVERYONE. and its the only way to raise "real" money.

we should also consider the differences in the populations of these other countries compared to ours, but thats another OP

Put higher taxes on yachts and private airplanes... expensive sports cars ...

You choose ... I have watched state legislatures exempt those items from taxes ... (not food, but yachts)

It is like the Gilded Age again. However the Rockefellers and Carnegies eventually became philanthropists and redeemed themselves a bit. I don't see many CEOs today taking that path. They act more like Michael Douglas in that 80s film when he said, "Greed is good". Reagun and trickle down economics has screwed us for 40 years.

Wait, what's that? When they laud the 50s they only mean race and gender policies, not tax policy? Oh...

and that is how infrastructure, interstate freeways, libraries and good schools were able to get built and people educated.

which the GOP seems so fond of had top marginal tax rates in the 80%s and 90%s. Even through the 60s it stayed in the 70%s. Isn't that time period the "Great" in MAGA (though I suppose some MAGAts mean antebellum)?

Deductions we no longer have.
And even if we did raise to that level, there arent enough rich in number or income for the new tax to bring in the kind of money we need. Sorry, but its just not there.

I graduated from university in 1986. Over the course of my six year experience I racked up $3000.00 in student loan debt. I was lucky. The last two years of my undergrad I worked for the U as a full time employee, a janitor, and part of my benefit package I was awarded 8 credits per quarter. That’s right, we used quarters. My parents were able to afford paying tuition along the way because tuition was about $1600.00 per quarter. I paid for everything else.

My wife also graduated owing about $40,000.00 but she mostly lived in on campus student housing. She graduated in four years. She graduated in 1989.

My point is that corporate taxes and taxes on the wealthy subsidized our collective college experience. As taxes on the wealthy have decreased, the responsibility for making up the cost has fallen on the individual.

But the lowering of costs is not only related to taxes. When public utilities ask for an increase in residential rates and a decrease in commercial gas and electric rates, citizens increasingly subsidize commercial gas and electric rates.

When senior housing companies don’t provide trained, on site medical staff but instead rely on local police, fire and EMS , the public subsidizes corporate profits from those already vastly overpriced residences.

I am absolutely convinced that our national problems are not the result of a lack of money. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

that label, but the truth is we as a party were complicit in some of this, not all, but definitely a substantive bit of it. Sorry if that offends anyone, but the truth never should.

when I graduated, I owed $700.

Back then 80% of our college education was subsidized by the government,
and we had to pay the remaining 20%.

Now, only 20% is subsidized while students/parents have to make up the remaining 80%.

My daughter went to a JC for her 1st 2 years. I was shocked to learn that the cost for her
semester was identical to my university 37 years earlier.
She has since moved on to UCSD, a 4 year university, where the true cost of a college education
is realized.

and have worked good paying jobs ever since. Do I have a title or anything like that? No. But there are a lot of skilled jobs out there who need people with the right skill, not a degree.

College costs rise faster than medical costs!!!

Or maybe, heaven forbid, there'll just happen to be another catastrophic foreign terrorist attack on domestic ground.

Increase their taxes and take away all their loopholes . The sooner the better.

His wealth tax was a 1999 proposal, to pay off the national debt. More recently he promised his tax law would increase the tax the wealthy would pay, including himself. So even Trump favors soaking the rich.

He lied!

Don't tell anyone, they might get upset.

The title should be more like: Have the wealthy pay higher taxes to give back some of the money they have soaked off of all Americans and are now hoarding.

Giving workers a larger share of the wealth they create is really the key to getting the economy moving again, because workers are consumers. The idea that corporations would use their tax cuts to increase production when their markets aren't growing was ridiculous on its face. Give McDonald's employees more pay, and they'll buy more stuff from Walmart. Give Walmart employees more pay, and they'll buy more hamburgers. Up at the top, the rich still get richer, and lots of people get to be the newly rich.

it "voodoo economics". What can you do? Some people are just stupid.

I think we're just asking them to wash up occasionally.

Words have meaning, and "soaking" in this context is a pejorative that we don't need to be using.

"Pay their fair share" — now that's both accurate and palatable.

How much of federal income tax revenue should the top 1% pay?

Neither phrase — "soaking the rich" or "pay their fair share" — specifies rates, but that's where you start with a question. If the question is should we "soak the rich" by asking them to pay a top marginal rate of 70 percent, then we start at a disadvantage psychologically because it sounds as if we're penalizing the rich. If the question is should we ask the rich to "pay their fair share" by paying a top marginal rate of 70 percent, the debate becomes the top rate and what is fair. It's easier to win an argument when you don't start with a negative term for your position.

I hope that makes sense.

On a total of a bit over 10 trillion in total income. (REPORTED income, but thats another OP)

If they just paid the exact same percentage of their income that average working people pay, not with the loopholes the 1,000 dollar per hour tax lawyers get them, and hidden off shore accounts, most of our economic issues could be solved. The Ryan tax scam is coming back to bite their asses. Last week DU posted a big batch of tweets from average people that just filled out this years taxes. They all owe double from last year with zero economic change in their lives. We were warned that "our" tax break was a scam that would result in end of year nightmares. As the season goes on, most of us can't file until February after all forms get to us, we are going to see outrage. Let's not forget, trump bragged about paying no taxes because he is smart. Those smart people will not pay a penny on the "WALL" they demand. Watch this space!! (as Maddow says)

Average taxpayers do not "owe double" from last year.

Small contractor doing a deck for me now just finished taxes. Made less than last year, typically gets return of $7,000 with business cost deductions. This year he owes $6,500 because all deductabkes where taking away for billionaires tax cuts. Myself, my daughter, brothers, and multiple close friends are being shocked at what they owe, usually get returns. The DU list of pissed off tax payers that where shown last week also shows this FACT. So, kindly do not call me a liar. Maybe not you, but do not fucking speak for us that are getting screwed for trumpanzees. Have a nice day.

I ended up owing $1500 more than was withheld. File as married couple with no dependents using standard deduction only.

This makes my total federal tax paid as $13k. For it to double, I would end up owing $ 26k in taxes this year on the same amount of income.

Are you suggesting, I will need to write a $14,000 check on April 15 instead of the $1500 last year ?

You do understand that your total tax bill has nothing to do with getting a refund or not don't you??

I know that I have the max taken out every year and because of mortgage, interest usuall get a $1,500 return. This year I owe $2,000. No change in anything, except tax laws that benefit wealthy and expect working people to pay for a fucking wall and trumps golf getaways. My tax preparer, a staunch republican Christian, said all her clients are facing the same shit. I volunteered and served 4 years during Vietnam era, draft number 312. Would not had to go. I worked 60 puss hour weeks as faculty at a college, under North Carolina's piss poor pay scale of $30,000 per year, paying for supplies out of pocket. Not asking for anything more than leave my earned benefits the fuck alone, if you wanna add trillions to the fiscal CONservitive budget. This America today, makes me sick I served this bunch of ignorant cult Christians that believe God sent trump. All the people I mentioned before are paying this year, opposed to usual refunds. Got nothing more to say, God be blessing MurKKKa, be best! Good day sir. Is that MichMan or MitchMan?

Be Best. Maybe donate some of that amazing tax break to trump Foundation or the go fund me wall. God sent trump, we all gonna be great. MAGA!!!

Hell, they got the entire city block including the building that the candy store is in!

They got chauffeur-driven and then hand-carried in golden litters on an expensive imported red carpet directly to the front of the line. Time for them to go to the BACK of the line and give up the obscene tax cuts. The super rich can afford to take a hit for the sake of their country, their fellow Americans, and the greater good, and they’ll STILL have plenty left over for another yacht or two plus a lot of nice deductions.

Jesus never said ANYTHING about how important it is to comfort the already comfortable.

Have enjoyed an reduced tax rate for nearly 40 years . The free ride is over

Because of taxation policy - and a lack of cuts to domestic (programs, safety net, infrastructure) and foreign policy (wars mainly, but really the military budget in general) - the uber-rich have been able to live large off the back of the American Empire for decades.

They have used the military extensively to crack down on regimes that would not play ball, they have used the power of the US government (which they so claim to despise) to extract concessions, resources and cash from smaller nations the world over. They have essentially operated as pirates - raping and pillaging across the globe taking everything they want and screwing the masses at every turn.

They owe for services already rendered and for unfair benefits still being reaped. This is not a "soaking of the rich", it is a prerequisite for the survival of modern civilization. Without fundamental changes across the entire global economy and in particular consumer culture, the world is on a knife's edge to chaos the like of which the world has never known...

George Mallory famously said, "Because it's there."

When asked why he robbed banks, Willie Sutton famously said, "Because that's where the money is."

Same thing with taxing the rich. It's there and that's where the money is. NO ONE is worth the billions upon billions these few greedy "capitalists" (read oligarchs) remove from society and horde for their greedy selves. NO society can survive such vampires sucking its economy dry.

Tax their asses and if they don't like it confiscate ALL of their wealth and deport them. They will NOT be missed.

I can barely afford to support my family on what I make now. I can’t afford to lose 1/2 my check to the criminals in Washington.
Tell ya what. Make waste and fraud against the federal government a capital offense. Because a person that commits fraud against the government has stolen someone’s paycheck. That person doesn’t deserve to live.
Last year, total revenue was over $3 1/2 trillion. If you can’t budget well enough to make that work, I wouldn’t even want you working at an H&R Block, much less budgeting for the most powerful nation on the planet.
If you want to pay more, pay more. You are free to make a donation to the US treasury. If you want to give 50% to a bunch of people that are going to burn through it like it’s free money, that’s your right. But keep your hands out of my wallet. I work way too hard for what little I have.