Democrats Go Big on Tax Cuts Ahead of 2028 Presidential Race

Influential Democrats are embracing broad tax cut plans for working-class Americans with an eye toward winning control of Congress in November and the White House in 2028.

Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) unveiled separate proposals last month that would cut federal taxes on low- and middle-income taxpayers while raising them for wealthy Americans. Booker’s plan would more than double the standard deduction to $75,000 for married couples, and Van Hollen’s would essentially eliminate federal income taxes for married couples earning $92,000 or less.

While Democrats have typically focused on cutting taxes for their base, these ideas go further and would effectively eliminate federal income tax for taxpayers below a certain threshold and let the taxpayer decide what to do with the windfall.

“It’s time to stop nibbling around the edges on policy,” said Booker, who ran for president in 2020. The party needs “big bold ideas that voters could quantifiably say, ‘this is going to make my life better.’”

The proposals from Booker and Van Hollen, both high-profile Democrats, come as voters express affordability concerns and after many Democrats embraced President Donald Trump’s campaign proposals-turned-policies of tax breaks for tips and overtime.

Economic policy analysts on the left and the right have already criticized the proposals, with some progressives preferring to focus on expanding the social safety net rather than cutting taxes. Analysts have also raised concerns about cost.

But Booker defended his plan, calling the tension between defending social programs and tax cuts a “false argument.”

“I don’t see this as a tax cut. I see this as an unrigging of the system,” Booker said in an interview with Bloomberg Tax. “It’s a corrective action to give relief on Americans—over 85%—while the people who have seen the most stratospheric gains in wealth are now paying their fair share.”

A Piece of the Puzzle

Democrats are likely to follow the tax-cut proposals with others that address other economic policy issues.

A comprehensive post-Trump agenda will include focused ways to help Americans in need and address the temporary nature of the tips and overtime tax breaks, along with tariffs and ballooning US debt, said David Mitchell, senior fellow for tax and regulatory policy at the liberal-leaning Washington Center for Equitable Growth.

“There does seem to be more of a focus right now among the proposals that have been put forth on providing tax cuts to lower-income folks as opposed to other types of investments,” Mitchell said. “I see these tax bills as the first part of the answer, but not the full story.”

Though their mechanics differ, the bills offered by Democrats, including Booker and Van Hollen, share a tax hike on the rich. That’s good politics, Mitchell said. And it mirrors some of what’s happening among Democrats at the state level.

Washington state just enacted its first-ever income tax, which only applies to earners making over $1 million a year.

And once-resistant Maine Gov. Janet Mills to endorsed an increase in taxes on the state’s richest residents as she lags behind the populist candidate Graham Platner in the Democratic primary for Senate. Mills vetoed a similar measure in 2024.

Backing from Groups

During an event last month unveiling the legislation, Van Hollen said his plan should be a pillar in any future Democratic tax plan that would also impose a surtax on income over $1 million.

The Maryland senator was flanked by a group that included Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), whose name is often floated as a potential presidential candidate, and former BlackRock managing partner Morris Pearl, who is chair of the “Patriotic Millionaires” group.

The group’s members are popping up at events to support tax-the-rich legislation in places like New York City. Their message: people like us can afford to pay more tax.

Van Hollen’s team took input from a range of experts and groups, including Patriotic Millionaires, to craft a middle-class tax cut plan paired with a millionaire’s surtax, according to Matt Slavoski, a Van Hollen spokesperson.

Founder Erica Payne said Patriotic Millionaires aggressively lobbied every cosponsor on the legislation, which is a plank in the group’s “money agenda,” and said tax cuts, like tax increases, are a lever to help provide economic relief.

“This is probably the single biggest fight that Democrats are going to have this year,” she said. “Some old school status-quo tired institutions and individuals reject the notion of any tax cut at all under the fear that we are feeding into a Republican narrative.”

The proposals come as Democrats start to think about their platform in the 2028 presidential election and eventually a post-Trump political environment.

“A lot of these members, whether it’s in the Senate or in the House, are looking to address a problem that they see,” said progressive Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). “And I hope that as we get into the presidential race in 2028, that we will have a more holistic look at what it looks like to address economic anxiety.”