Inequality is Weakening Social Security. Here’s How We Fix That.
When Congress set the cap on Social Security contributions in 1983, they didn’t anticipate forty years of rising inequality. And it’s cost us — a lot.
President Donald Trump frequently points to Ronald Reagan’s 1986 tax reform as a model for his own tax plan, which would drastically cut taxes on the wealthiest Americans. “Under this pro-America system,” Trump said in an August speech in Missouri, “our economy boomed. It just went beautifully — right through the roof.”
We were Senate staffers for Democrats back in 1986. There’s a lot about the Reagan reform that today’s Republicans appear to be forgetting. Indeed, what’s being proposed now is far, far friendlier to the rich and big corporations — and more harmful for everyone else.
Read the full article at TIME.
Lee Price is a former Chief Economist of the House Appropriations Committee; Steve Quick is a former Chief Risk officer at Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and Chief Economist for the Joint Economic Committee; both are Associate Fellows at the Institute for Policy Studies.
by Linda Benesch
When Congress set the cap on Social Security contributions in 1983, they didn’t anticipate forty years of rising inequality. And it’s cost us — a lot.
by Tom Conway
While corporate politicians consider cuts to essential programs like Social Security, the ultra-rich continue to exploit dodgy tax loopholes for their own personal gain.
by Sarah Izabel
Lawmakers are considering year-end tax breaks for corporations. A little help for families like yours and mine would go much further.
