Unbounded: How to Get a Wealth Tax
Political Priority
A policy can be popular and still not become law. People generally support taxing the wealthy more fairly,1 yet the actual policy agenda is still dominated by tax cuts and carve-outs for the very rich.2
“Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies.” – Groucho Marx
It’s important. If we don’t succeed, the middle class will run out of money, our government will run out of money, and what comes after will be an unnecessary upheaval. Unbounded growth requires a fairer tax system.
Popularity Is Not Enough
Popular support for a wealth tax continues to fail to translate into political action. The major parties continue to campaign on derivative issues instead.
Wealth tax proposals should be bi-partisan. Tax policy addresses system stability, fair contribution, and productive growth. Every party should have answers on these issues. It requires sustained constituent pressure to keep the focus on distribution.
Concentrated wealth buys influence, patience, and narrative control. Politicians often avoid talking about tax policy. Politicians prefer symbolic fights over structural fights because the structural fights threaten existing power.
Pressure
Popular support is not enough to create political accountability. Consider the Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act of 2026.3 Senator Elizabeth Warren introduced the bill with 10 Senate cosponsors. It was referred to the Finance Committee on March 26, 2026. The bill has not received a Senate vote. Its progress depends on decisions made by congressional leadership and the committee.
The government has the power to implement a wealth tax. Congress has procedures for advancing legislation held in committee. Budget reconciliation can expedite qualifying tax legislation. A House discharge petition can bring a bill to the floor. Congress must pass the legislation. But these powers are not being put to use.
We can identify the 11 senators who supported the Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act of 2026. But what about the other 89? What alternative proposals have they introduced? What action have they taken toward fairer taxation? Where can voters see their positions? Their positions are not equally visible. We may never get a recorded vote or a clear explanation of why action did not occur.
A wealth tax needs more than public support. It needs politicians to make it a legislative priority. We, the voters, need to hold them accountable.
One Policy
Single issue movements have won in the past by changing incentives. The Anti-Slavery movement used swing blocs. The Anti-Saloon League used one metric across party lines. Focused pressure was able to overcome government inaction.
The demand has to be simple and hard to evade. Voters should ask one question: Did this politician help move wealth taxation forward?
Affordability, mobility, stagnation, and instability all point back to distribution. Distribution is the root problem, and wealth taxation has to be a top priority.
Research. Learn the arguments. Share. Use facts and comparisons. Vote. Hold politicians accountable for inaction. Be inclusive, patient, and focused.
We need to be clear about what we want, not who we want to deliver it. No single politician can do this alone. But a clear policy goal can do what charisma cannot: it gives people something specific to coordinate around, something concrete to reward or oppose.
When I was onsite implementing shipping container handling automation, I could never get my way. I had ideas about how things should work, but I had no influence. I assumed that if I had the best ideas, people would naturally listen. They didn’t.
A rogue of a man, a ship’s captain turned technologist, taught me possibly the most important lesson of my life: Food is the key to everything. He was a character. Somehow he always had the best rental car, the best stories, and a way of finding himself in the middle of everything. He could walk into a room of executives, then sit down with the wharfies and share a beer, and somehow everyone respected him. He knew everyone. He remembered everyone’s stories. He had a story for everyone, a joke for every situation. He always landed on his feet.
I once asked him what his secret was. He gave me a wink and said: “I brought the rental guy some fresh crabs. I took our boss to the best restaurant and expensed it so he didn’t have to. When people know you care about them, they will work with you.” At first I thought he had just figured out how to work the system. But I eventually realized he understood something deeper: influence comes from creating value for other people.
From that day forward I nominated myself the team caterer. Every morning on the drive out to the terminal I would stop and buy fresh bread, salad, coldcuts, fruits, and put on a platter for the team. All expensed to the company of course, and happily so. Everyone loved it. Suddenly people listened to me, helped me when I needed it, and I had influence. I hadn’t convinced anyone. I just made them lunch.
I used to think that if enough people agreed on something, eventually it would happen, I just had to explain why I was right. But agreement is not enough. Something has to turn that agreement into action.
I’m not sure what to do. I don’t have the time or energy to spend hounding politicians. For now I’ve invested some time in sharing my concerns in this series. But I can see that addressing wealth concentration requires more than understanding the problem. It requires people coordinating around a shared goal. I’m still trying to figure out what that looks like. What do you think we should do?
Conclusion
Economic growth is being hampered by inequality. Inequality is a root cause and result of many of the crises we face today. Breaking the negative feedback cycle can help our civilization progress, build knowledge, and grow. Wealth tax is the most direct way to address inequality. There is popular support, but that is not enough to achieve legislation. Demand more from your politicians, regardless of party or platform. Convert broad agreement into procedural pressure.
The final part, References, lists the books, datasets, and researchers that informed this series.
Footnotes
“Impose an extra annual tax of 2% on wealth over $50 million, and 3% on wealth over $1 billion. This proposal would reduce the deficit by $200 billion a year. What is your recommendation?” Charge wealth tax: National 78%, Republicans 72%, Democrats 83% Common Ground of the American People. A 2024 polling roundup at Inequality.org reports that more than three out of five Americans supported a wealth tax across aggregated national polls. Pew found in 2026 that 61% of Americans say it bothers them a lot that wealthy people do not pay their fair share.↩︎
The latest major U.S. tax package has been criticized for delivering the largest gains to upper-income households and business owners; see Big Ugly Tax Scam Act Analysis.↩︎
The 2026 Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act is a concrete example of a stand-alone wealth-tax bill with thresholds, enforcement rules, and valuation provisions. See the list of cosponsors.↩︎