Elon Musk also spoke out against the tax.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump and entrepreneur Elon Musk spoke out against the “tax for billionaires” promoted in the U.S. Congress by representatives of the Democratic Party.
According to the former U.S. leader, if the tax is introduced, American billionaires will prefer to leave for another country, the statement said. “I know all these countries with wise leadership, and they are delighted with what radical leftist maniacs are doing in the [U.S.] Congress,” Trump said. At the same time, the former American leader wondered whether he would be able to apply for the presidential nomination again if this tax was introduced. “I think I will survive, but many will not,” he concluded.
In turn, Musk stressed on Twitter that the introduction of a tax for the most affluent segments of the population will not help solve the problem of the U.S. national debt, which exceeds $ 28.9 trillion. “Imposing even a 100 percent tax on all billionaires will only partially cover this amount, so, obviously, the rest of the funds will be taken from the common population,” the entrepreneur said.
The proposal to introduce a tax for billionaires was put forward on Wednesday by the chairman of the Finance Committee of the U.S. Senate, Democrat Ron Wyden (from Oregon). According to his initiative, American billionaires should pay taxes not only on their direct income but also on the growth in the value of assets, including stocks. Now the tax is paid only in case of their sale.
According to the plans announced by Wyden, the tax will apply to Americans who have assets worth more than $ 1 billion or receive income of at least $100 million for three consecutive years. In total, it can affect over 700 people. It is assumed that the proceeds will be used to finance the social and economic agenda of the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden.
Biden had previously criticized American billionaires and large corporations, who in some cases pay virtually no taxes on their income. According to him, the richest Americans should pay about $160 billion annually in taxes. Part of this money, according to Biden’s idea, should go, among other things, to the development of infrastructure projects.
