A group of American billionaires, including world-famous investor George Soros, appealed to candidates for the US presidential election of 2020. In their letter, they urged them to impose a wealth tax. The wealthy Americans requested all presidential candidates to back the imposition of a moderate wealth tax on the fortunes of one-tenth of the richest 1 percent of the citizens. “The next dollar of new tax revenue should come from the most financially fortunate, not from middle-income and lower-income Americans,” the letter declares. The document was signed by 19 billionaires such as Facebook's co-founder Chris Hughes, Abigail Disney, a descendant of Walt Disney, and Molly Munger, a daughter of the Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman Charlie Munger. The final name on the letter remained anonymous.
The wealthiest people of the United States believe that a wealth tax could help address the climate crisis, improve the economy, eliminate a number of health problems, create new means of social mobility, and strengthen democratic freedoms.
Members of the billionaire group have previously argued that they should pay a fair share of taxes. In 2017, more than 400 wealthy American citizens, including George Soros and Stephen Rockefeller, signed a letter. They urged the US Congress not to lower taxes on the rich. In their opinion, tax cuts for wealthy American families would exacerbate inequality and add to the US national debt.
