ProPublica Report: How The Wealthiest Are Avoiding Paying Income Taxes

Tax experts Dorothy Brown and David Cay Johnston join Lawrence O'Donnell to discuss how a new ProPublica report on the wealthiest Americans avoiding income taxes proves that “we do not have a progressive tax system in America.”

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[rgwak]

In summary, when you pay the people who are in charge of writing the rules, the rules are going to work in your favor.

[Elizabeth-ypre]

Yes! It blows my mind when I see people who are struggling to make ends meet, voting to elect people who will only reduce taxes for the rich, and not for them.

[Elizabeth-ypre]

It's economic warfare ...class warfare, and we have been pit against each other. While we fight one another for meager wages and dead end jobs, they skate.

[ivanplacido]

Tax avoidance is how billionaires are actually made

[rgwak]

Friendly reminder that the Stable Genius, the so-called "champion of the working class, " paid less federal taxes than most of his working class supporters.
But keep donating to that re-election campaign! No self-made "billionaire" should be made to suffer paying for his own campaign. 😅😂

[GrenadeMan]

Tomorrow on facebook your cousin Jeff, the grocer, will say how taxing billionaires will to lead to communism .

[marmac]

Here's what i'd like 2C - a complete/comprehensive breakdown: of all the Senators- Income/Wealth AND their top 10 Donors and How Much! those of manchin and mcconnell come to mind most especially!!

[DREAMSANDSOUL]

No person on earth should earn more than 500.000 per year.

[greuser]

Argentina formulated a wealth tax and its working very well for the govt to help their needy and improve their infrastructure. No reason why US can't do the same.

[kbone]

FLAT TAX over X amount. Pretty straight forward, and it shuts tax lawyers up fast. 2 birds, 1 stone.

[bayareagrlever]

I’m sick of the greedy, selfish wealthy who don’t pay their fair share in taxes. I’m sick of government spending my tax dollars on stupid crap and sending money to other countries while Americans suffer. I didn’t even get a single stimulus check and I’ve been unemployed for a year. Life in America is not fair, to say the least.

[judybargenquast]

Please, no one has figured out that a minimum tax is needed? It's not hard people. Not hard at all.

[POCarton]

Here is the fix for all the tax avoidance. Stop taxing on what you earn, and start taxing when you buy. No deductions, no write offs. You buy steel for your factory, you pay tax on it. You buy stock, you pay tax on them. What ever you buy, you pay a federal tax on it. The drug dealer pays tax when he buys the new Rolex.

[murphythompson]

I know without Trump Tweets to report as news we get this. This isn't news. It's been the "American way" my whole life.

[kayt]

Loop holes need to be eliminated. A basic tax for their income ( above $500k) is needed, , %25 of their incomes, would be more than most Millionaires pay now.

[kevgermany]

No need to make this a racial argument. The same problems exist in other countries. South Africa for instance. By turning this into a racial argument you reinforce and perpetuate racism.

[johnnyw]

That’s because the tax codes are written by the wealthy people and for the wealthy people.

[FrickinTony]

That's why we got the bipartisan budget reduction act of 2010. And the war on welfare

[UrbanLegend]

Dorothy Brown is not the person to front their effort! She wants to make it all about my whiteness!

[BRN.]

😂 I can't believe everyone is so surprised about this. If you knew about finance and basic fiscal optimisation, you'd know that's common practice.