Bernie Sanders Enters New Territory: A Wealth Tax

[IsailedawayfromFR]

When he introduced his Medicare-for-all bill last week, Bernie Sanders also put down on paper the idea he’s been talking about, sometimes loudly, sometimes with caution, other times not publicly at all, for more than 20 years: a “wealth tax” in the United States.

In 1997, in his book, Outsider in the House, he declared it “high time to establish a tax on wealth similar to those that exist in most European countries.” Nine years later, during his first race for U.S. Senate, his opponent quoted the passage online, printed it on brochures, and pushed it in statements: “Sanders’ European-style wealth tax,” on “everything they own every year. Every tractor, cow, and acre.” In response, the Sanders campaign argued that he had never formally proposed a wealth tax, just floated the idea.

During the Democratic primary in 2016, the Sanders campaign did consider an official wealth tax, two former officials said, but the idea died over concerns about the reality of implementation and that the tax plan would be perceived as far out of the mainstream.

Now, nearly a year after the election, the 76-year-old Vermont senator is one of the most popular politicians in America. Ahead of his Medicare-for-all announcement last week, a total of 16 senators backed the bill, putting about one third of the chamber’s Democrats behind single-payer health care, an almost real-time shift in the party’s baseline.

But few American lawmakers have embraced a wealth tax — an annual federal tax on the net assets of the very rich — though economists and academics, both liberal and conservative, have made the case for one before. Others have argued that any wealth tax would be dauntingly complicated, and potentially unconstitutional. Sanders has described it as one way to spread the concentration of wealth.

Last week, he outlined a wealth tax policy for the first time in a white paper released alongside the single-payer bill, with a list of 10 ideas for how to pay for such a program.

“This is something that he's always given some consideration to,” said Warren Gunnels, a policy adviser who has worked for Sanders for 18 years, served on his presidential campaign, and helped craft the new bill.

As outlined in the six-page fact sheet, titled “Options to Finance Medicare-For-All,” Sanders’ federal wealth tax would establish an annual 1% levy on net worth exceeding $21 million. (For a family with $21.5 million in assets, that would mean paying a 1% tax on $500,000, or $5,000. For the wealthiest man in the United States, Bill Gates, whose net worth is speculated to be valued around $86 billion, the annual 1% tax would likely apply to all but a sliver of his net assets, and potentially total hundreds of millions of dollars.)
https://www.buzzfeed.com/rubycramer/with-popular-single-payer-plan-bernie-sanders-enters-new?utm_term=.fnPOjKzB66#.utWPeRqpVV

Bernie is on the Socialist Pipe dream.

Like all Socialists, he ignores the ramifications of his actions.  Does he really believe the top 1% will remain here as willing taxpayers if his tax gets implemented?

Here's how much they pay and they will simply walk away.

[Oceander]

Never happen. A wealth tax is, in fact, a member of that rare species known as a "direct tax" which must be apportioned among the states by population.   

[InHeavenThereIsNoBeer]

 “Sanders’ European-style wealth tax,” on “everything they own every year. Every tractor, cow, and acre.”

Tractors, cows, and acres are means of production that produce (along with a lot of hard work) wealth and feed the world.

I propose we tax second and third homes owned by parasites who "earn" their living sucking of the productive.

[240B]

Never going to happen.

The wealthiest people in America are all politicians. Or government employees.


Politicians make their living getting out of paying taxes, or doing any sort of public service. The very idea that the richest people in America would pass a law that taxes themselves is ridiculous.


How many houses does Bernie Sanders own? How many millions does he have? Really?


Bernie Sanders is going to tax himself? You have got to be kidding me.

[RetBobbyMI]

Never going to happen.

The wealthiest people in America are all politicians. Or government employees.


Politicians make their living getting out of paying taxes, or doing any sort of public service. The very idea that the richest people in America would pass a law that taxes themselves is ridiculous.


How many houses does Bernie Sanders own? How many millions does he have? Really?


Bernie Sanders is going to tax himself? You have got to be kidding me.

Congress always exempts themselves!

[catfish1957]

Folks, it bad enough business that we have to let Fedzilla know our income.  They f'n have no business what so ever knowing our net worth.

This would become a socialist government gateway dream for confiscation esp. for our 401K's, IRA's, and pensions.

[catfish1957]

Never going to happen.

w many houses does Bernie Sanders own?

Bernie Sanders is going to tax himself? You have got to be kidding me.

IF the threshold is $21M, Bernie the communist prob. has $20.99 M

[Applewood]

People go for this [expletive] because they think it only affects the "rich' and not them.  They don't get that sooner or later, such a scheme will eventually have a negative impact on them.  Other countries have tried taxing the "rich" and it has backfired big time. 

[driftdiver]

The "rich" will just move their money offshore.

[LMAO]

The lure of people like Bernie Sanders is everything they propose sounds good to the average person. But none of these proposals ever takes in account human nature and that's why in the end they don't really work.

 People like Sanders believe people will do whatever they tell them

[Fishrrman]

catfish wrote:
"This would become a socialist government gateway dream for confiscation esp. for our 401K's, IRA's, and pensions."

That's why since I retired, I'm working on drawing down my IRA's and 401k (now converted to an additional IRA) as quickly as possible.

I move as much as practicable into regular savings each year.
I figure ordinary savings accounts will be the last thing they come for.

Because sooner or later, they're going to "come for it".
democrat/communists or Republicans -- probably won't make that much of a difference.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

catfish wrote:
"This would become a socialist government gateway dream for confiscation esp. for our 401K's, IRA's, and pensions."

That's why since I retired, I'm working on drawing down my IRA's and 401k (now converted to an additional IRA) as quickly as possible.

I move as much as practicable into regular savings each year.
I figure ordinary savings accounts will be the last thing they come for.

Because sooner or later, they're going to "come for it".
democrat/communists or Republicans -- probably won't make that much of a difference.

Good strategy which I also am deploying, in spite of paying more income taxes.

Then comes under the mattresses, finally in hard assets like land and metals.

[andy58-in-nh]

Taxing wealth will inevitably produce nothing but poverty.

Progressives preach "equality" but in practice, crave power.

[XenaLee]

Taxing wealth will inevitably produce nothing but poverty.

Progressives preach "equality" but in practice, crave power.

Since when have commies ever cared about creating more poverty.  It's what they live for, in fact....since it gives them more power over their subjects.

[goatprairie]

Bernie is on the Socialist Pipe dream.

Like all Socialists, he ignores the ramifications of his actions.  Does he really believe the top 1% will remain here as willing taxpayers if his tax gets implemented?

Here's how much they pay and they will simply walk away.

There is a very large segment of the American public who believe the rich pay no taxes. These people are called Democrats. I know because I've had to explain a form of that chart to a number of Democrat friends and family members.
It would behoove the Republican prez candidate in 2020 (Trump or whomever) to try an educate the ignorant masses i.e. Democrats about who pays the bulk of the taxes.

[cato potatoe]

Let's not forget that it was Dotard Trump who first proposed this in 1999. 

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Taxing wealth will inevitably produce nothing but poverty.

Progressives preach "equality" but in practice, crave power.

Taxing wealth causes the wealthy to leave, handing the burden of paying taxes over to the less fortunate.

That is how the poverty will occur.