The Democrats are constantly calling President Trump’s tax cuts, cuts for the wealthiest Americans, but they are desperately trying to cut taxes on the wealthiest Americans in states controlled by Democrats. That includes people living in Westchester, N.Y., Lake, III., and Los Angeles, Calif., counties.
In Trump’s tax bill, it evened the inequality of taxes paid by all Americans. Under the old system, states with the highest taxes were given write-offs much higher than the average American got. That’s because of the deductions they got from state and local taxes paid. The lower taxed states were subsidizing the highest taxed states, regardless of income.
Actually, the more you make the less you paid in federal income taxes.
Here’s a question: if Democrats want “Medicare for all,” much increased college tuition support, and a “Green New Deal,” how can they possibly backtrack on the mild tax hike that President Trump’s tax bill imposed on wealthy citizens in blue states?
I’m referring to the reduced state and local tax deduction caps under the 2017 Republican tax reform legislation. The SALT deduction, as it is known, forced federal income taxpayers in states such as Florida and Tennessee, which don’t have state income taxes, to pay proportionally more to the federal government than residents of states with high income taxes. That was wrong. By capping the deduction and lowering rates for everyone, Trump’s tax bill made the system fairer, reducing taxes overall while eliminating a massive loophole for very wealthy individuals in high-tax states.
But I find it amusing, as CNBC notes, Democrats from high state income tax California, New Jersey, New York, and Illinois are working to increase the SALT caps. In other words, Democrats are now working urgently to cut tax bills for high-earners in Westchester, N.Y., Lake, III., and Los Angeles, Calif., counties.
This is hilarious. After all, if Democrats are unable to persuade high-earners in their own states that they should pay the same proportional amount of federal income taxes as other high-earners in other states, they will surely struggle to persuade those same individuals to pay thru-the-roof income taxes under a future Democratic administration so that we can afford “Medicare for all.”