Week in Insights: Let’s Define the Rich Before Taxing Them More

Curated by Melanie Cohen and Daniel Xu

When a conversation arises about why Americans have historically disfavored taxing the rich, someone may trot out the notion that people oppose raising taxes on the class they aspire to join. But they simply may have a different understanding of who “the rich” is in “tax the rich.”

When a tax hike policy places actual numbers on the targeted income brackets, raising taxes on billionaires and people who make more than $400,000 a year generally polls well—with 69% approval among registered voters, according to a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll released late last month. ...