Ross: We’re already paying wealth taxes 鈥� why not one more?
Oct 29, 2021, 7:41 AM | Updated: 11:07 am
(Getty Images)
(Getty Images)
The idea of on the stock holdings of billionaires was proposed Wednesday, and died Thursday.
Talk about cancel culture! Not even Joe Manchin calling it a 鈥淧atriot Tax鈥� could save it.
So why would that be, do you suppose?
“Well, Dave,” you might say, “because it鈥檚 one thing to tax a rich person when he sells his stock, but it鈥檚 totally unfair to tax him just for owning stock.”
Really? Then what about my property tax? Every year I have to pay a tax based on the current value of my house, which is now way more than I paid for it. That鈥檚 a wealth tax!
“But Dave, it鈥檚 not stock, so, it鈥檚 different,” you might answer.
OK, so let鈥檚 talk about stock. Like a lot of people who intend to retire someday, I have a brokerage account. It鈥檚 full of stock I haven鈥檛 sold. Every year I pay a fee to the people who manage that account. What鈥檚 that fee based on? The current value of that account! That鈥檚 a wealth tax! It doesn鈥檛 go to the IRS, so it won鈥檛 subsidize preschool, or day care 鈥� except maybe for the children of my financial team (who are great people) 鈥� but it鈥檚 a wealth tax!
So, wealth taxes are everywhere. Just not in the Build Back Better bill, because that wealth tax would have cost some serious money.
“But Dave 鈥� won鈥檛 the government still get that money when the rich people sell their stock?”
No! Because people who bought Tesla at $38 are never going to sell that stock! It鈥檚 worth 28 times as much now. The capital gains tax would be huge. So, they鈥檒l just borrow their spending money using the stock as collateral, and carry the debt. When they die, the heirs will get the stock free and clear of any capital gains tax, and easily pay off the debt.
This doesn鈥檛 make rich people bad, but it does mean they will continue to keep a much larger percentage of their wealth than you and I get to keep. Which is fair because we’d just squander it anyway.
Do I think the politicians were paid off to kill the wealth tax? No. I鈥檓 not going to say they were paid off. But I am going to speculate that when it comes to the kind of wealth that can swing entire elections, politicians understand what needs to be done 鈥� without being told.
Listen to Seattle鈥檚 Morning News weekday mornings from 5 鈥� 9 a.m. on 成人X站 Radio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the聽podcast here.
