According to sources who spoke with The Intercept, Axios, and public statements from Donald Trump himself, the 45th president’s first sane policy move may be upon us. Apparently edgelord / presidential adviser Steve Bannon has floated a new 44 percent top marginal tax rate for people who earn more than $5 million annually. According to IRS data, those Black Card holders accounted for 8.8 percent of the overall taxes paid in 2014, and this rate increase would amount to roughly $180 billion in collected tax over the next decade.
During an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Trump claimed that his rich pals are actually eager to lay out more in taxes, saying, “I have wealthy friends that say to me, ‘I don’t mind paying more tax.’ ” This theory will likely be tested soon, as tax reform is a hot-button issue for the GOP; purists and newbies alike. With Congress licking its wounds and eager to move on from the half-step of its Obamacare “repeal and replace” initiatives, taxes make an obvious new target.
