One of the most radical ideas proposed by Marx in his Manifesto was that of "A heavily progressive or graduated income tax." (Marx 230) A progressive income tax is one that taxes the public based on their income; people with higher incomes are taxed more than those with lower incomes. On February 12, 1913, the Sixteenth Amendment was added to the United States Constitution.
It states, "The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration." Before this Amendment, the United States only levied regressive taxes, such as property and sales taxes, which still persist.
After the Amendment, the tax rate was progressive; 1 percent of all income up to $20,000 was to be paid to the government, and this rate rose to 6 percent after $500,000. Over the years, it has become increasingly progressive, with 15 tax brackets of differing incomes and rates. This system was designed to take more from those who have more, and redistribute the income to those who have less. Later, Social Security would formalize this through the direct redistribution of income. These ideas are obviously Communist in nature, as they attempt to close the financial gap between the so-called bourgeois and proletarians.
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Who Likes a Progressive Income Tax?
The Institute for Policy Innovation’s Dr. Merrill Matthews says not the formerly communist countries.
Karl Marx’s vision of a socialist society included a progressive income tax, where higher income people pay not just more tax, but higher rates on their income.
Ironically, while the U.S. and Western Europe tend to embrace capitalism, they adopted Marx’s progressive income tax. Yet nine of the East European and formerly communist countries have abandoned it for a flat tax, where only one tax rate is applied to all income.
And now Bulgaria and the Czech Republic are considering joining the flat taxers with a single 10 percent rate.
Having spent decades under communist rule, formerly communist countries are ready to cast off Marxist policies that stifle economic growth—like the progressive income tax.
So when will the capitalist countries also abandon their Marxist policies?
