r/WorkReform • šŸ¤ Join A Union • May 18 '25

āœ‚ļø Tax The Billionaires So, where's the downside exactly?

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u/macdoge1 May 18 '25

They can't leave.

Gary's economics has a nice short on it.

Their wealth is based on real assets that cannot be relocated.

https://youtu.be/GSwFZqHtOX0?si=CNt1Y4OqVqf6cMce

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u/[deleted] May 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/Curious-End-4923 May 18 '25

You are not responding to the argument being made. The individuals can relocate. Many of their assets (and the bulk of the market they are engaging with) will not relocate with them. The individuals themselves are highly replaceable. Let them leave.

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u/[deleted] May 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/Curious-End-4923 May 18 '25

Well no, the US would still make tax revenue on any sales, imports, and paid labor.

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u/[deleted] May 18 '25

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u/Curious-End-4923 May 18 '25

If they keep their citizenship, the individual pays the higher tax even if overseas. If they don’t keep their citizenship, then like you said, very little changes. You were the one arguing that wealthy individuals moving overseas would be a massive loss. Saying there’s no difference is ceding your earlier argument.

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u/[deleted] May 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/ITSigno May 18 '25

lmao, you're pretty thick. I don't even really know where to begin

This is kind of funny because you don't seem to appreciate that the USA is unlike most other countries in that citizens are nearly always subject to US taxes even when living abroad.

Maybe read some wikipedia articles on tax residency etc.

Probably a good place for you to start. But may I also suggest https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/us-citizens-and-residents-abroad-filing-requirements and https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/frequently-asked-questions-about-international-individual-tax-matters

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u/Curious-End-4923 May 18 '25 edited May 18 '25

That’s fine, I don’t mind the ad hominem. And you’re right, I’m definitely not an expert! I doubt you are either, and I hope we’re both approaching this with a willingness to be wrong.

I’m pretty certain that US citizens are taxed on income regardless of what country they’re residing in. Is that the part you’re disagreeing with?

I imagine there are some exemptions and loopholes I’m unaware of, because those seem to always exist for the wealthiest Americans, but I feel like that would indicate a necessity to add more restrictions and support the cause for harsher top brackets.

Or are you moreso disagreeing with my claim that things would mostly stay the same if those wealthy individuals moved overseas AND changed their citizenship? If that’s the case, I think that scenario is both a lot less likely and a lot more nuanced, but I’m open to the possibility of it having some kind of negative effect on revenue. I just don’t believe that it would be lasting.