Paul Krugman: Zombie Tax Lies
PK:
Zombie Tax Lies: The claim that only rich people pay taxes is a zombie lie — something that keeps coming back no matter how many times it’s killed by evidence. So, let’s try another shot to the head. Yes, high-income people pay the bulk of the federal income tax. But that’s not the only tax! And while the income tax is quite progressive, the payroll tax — the other major federal tax — isn’t; and state and local taxes are strongly regressive.... The overall system is barely progressive at all. And here’s the thing: the people peddling this stuff about those lucky duckies who don’t pay tax because their incomes are low know all this, because it has been pointed out many times. They are deliberately trying to deceive you.
