Just make billionaires pay their "fair share."
asserted
billionaires → make → share
The Cato Institute recently decided to run the numbers on nine major proposals associated with the Democratic Socialists of America's 2026 platform.
asserted
Institute → decide → platform
Cato estimates those proposals could cost somewhere between $71 trillion and $212 trillion over the next decade.
uncertain
proposals → estimate → decade
Now, that's a gigantic range and an important caveat to know.
asserted
that → know → ?
Cato assembled estimates from multiple studies to illustrate the potential magnitude of these policies.
asserted
Cato → assemble → policies
But let's take the low number.
asserted
's → let → number
Surely America's billionaires can cover that, right?
asserted
billionaires → cover → that
Let's find out.
asserted
's → find → ?
Take everything from the 400 richest Americans
Cato estimates America's 400 richest people collectively held approximately $6.6 trillion in wealth in 2025.
asserted
people → take → 2025
So, let's do something even the most aggressive tax proposal doesn't suggest.
asserted
proposal → let → something
You raised $6.6 trillion.
asserted
You → raise → trillion
Unfortunately, you've covered only about 9% of Cato's low-end estimate.
asserted
you → cover → estimate
Just make billionaires pay their "fair share."
asserted
billionaires → make → share
You can only confiscate someone's fortune once.
asserted
You → confiscate → fortune
Next year, you need another taxpayer.
asserted
you → need → taxpayer
Let's go after corporations.
asserted
's → let → corporations
Cato estimates domestic corporations could generate approximately $35 trillion of after-federal-tax profits over the next decade.
uncertain
corporations → estimate → decade
Let's take every additional dollar of that, too.
asserted
's → let → that
Even then, according to Cato's calculations, you'd cover only about half of its $71 trillion low-end estimate.
uncertain
you → accord → estimate
America already has bills.
asserted
America → have → bills
The federal government is projected to run roughly $24 trillion in deficits over the coming decade under the baseline cited by Cato.
asserted
government → project → Cato
We're already spending money we don't have before adding trillions in new promises.
asserted
we → spend → promises
Just raise the income-tax rate
Here's where the math gets even more interesting.
asserted
math → raise → rate
Cato cites Joint Committee on Taxation economists who studied how much additional revenue could be generated by pushing top federal income-tax rates toward their revenue-maximizing level.
uncertain
revenue → cite → level
Cato calculates the additional revenue at roughly $400 billion over 10 years.
asserted
Cato → calculate → years
Change tax rates dramatically and people change behavior.
asserted
people → change → behavior
They work differently, invest differently, realize income differently and find different legal ways to structure their finances.
asserted
They → work → finances
That's why you can't simply take today's income and multiply it by whatever tax rate sounds good on television.
asserted
rate → take → television
Eventually, you run out of rich people
This is the part politicians don't like discussing.
asserted
politicians → run → people
You can argue America should have higher taxes.
asserted
America → argue → taxes
You can argue government should provide more services.
asserted
government → argue → services
But let's stop pretending there's a magical vault somewhere containing enough billionaire money to pay for every promise Washington wants to make.
asserted
Washington → let → promise
Eventually the math works its way down the income ladder.
asserted
math → work → ladder
That’s right Uncle DSA Sam wants you.
asserted
Sam → ’ → you
You can only confiscate someone's fortune once.
asserted
You → confiscate → fortune
Next year, you need another taxpayer.
asserted
you → need → taxpayer
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher famously said the problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money.
asserted
you → say → money
Forty years later, we can debate the politics.
asserted
we → debate → politics
But it's getting awfully difficult to debate the math.
asserted
it → get → math
The Aporia
