Quote:
Originally Posted by justinstrife
You could take 100% from the top 5% wage earners in this country, and not make a dent in our deficit. We have a serious, serious, spending problem that needs to be addressed. One that has been festering due to Republicans and Democrats for decades.
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Nope, 100% tax rate on the top 5% wage earners would solve the deficit problem completely, in theory.
Top 5% incomes average $250,000
115 million households in US, 5% of that is 5.75 million households
US deficit in 2011 roughly $1.3 trillion
So 100% taxes on top 5% of incomes is 5.75 mln x $250,000= $1.44 trillion, which would give a theoretical surplus on the federal budget.
Off course this is not a realistic example. High incomes would simply stop working or leave the country.