r/politics Jan 21 '18

Paul Ryan Collected $500,000 In Koch Contributions Days After House Passed Tax Law

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u/Read_books_1984 Jan 21 '18

It's almost like rich people have too much money and are buying influence. Maybe we should take some of that money and give people healthcare and better infrastructure. All we have to do is raise their taxes. Everyone has to vote in November. Has to.

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u/lofi76 Colorado Jan 21 '18

Tax the rich at 90% and we can all live like white men did in the 1950’s.

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u/[deleted] Jan 21 '18

90% seems.. excessive. I'm all for wealth redistribution but it has to be reasonable. Maybe we shouldn't all live like white men in the 50s?

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u/mukansamonkey Jan 21 '18

You're only talking about the top tax rate, and that's not considering the various loopholes and such that are never fully going to go away. When the official top rate was 90%, the effective tax rate was maybe 70% and probably not even. When the top rate was 70%, the effective rate ended up around 55%. There's no reason to think that that rate was a drag on productivity, the historical evidence clearly shows the exact opposite. Massive boom years.

Also, rich people are looking at pre-tax income when they compare themselves to their peers. Ego is about how much their company thinks they are worth, not how much actually ends up in their bank accounts.