Congress Surprised By Biden’s Proposed $5 Trillion Tax Increase

Joe Biden’s recently proposed $6.8 trillion annual budget, which states an aimed increase of $5 trillion in taxes in order to fuel the initiative, left numerous lawmakers gawking as it reportedly vastly exceeds what they believed would be requested.

Such a figure is quite high when one considers that former President Donald Trump previously set a budget proposal record in 2021, requesting the U.S. spend $4.8 trillion in the fiscal year amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The Hill reported that such a decision would prove politically risky for Biden if he hopes to be reelected in 2024. The outlet noted that the Democrat Party will have to defend 23 Senate seats in next year’s election, including in states that may end up electing conservatives such as Ohio, Montana, and West Virginia. Meanwhile, numerous Americans are growing more concerned with the U.S. economy.

American Greatness reported that despite Biden’s pledge that people making less than $400,000 a year would see zero tax increases, some have claimed that his newest proposal would cause skyrocketing inflation and tax rates alike.

Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID) characterized Biden’s request as “jaw-dropping,” declaring it to be “exactly the wrong approach to solving our fiscal problems.”

The Ohio representative has previously opposed fiscal initiatives coming out of the Biden administration, including its infamous “Build Back Better Act.”

A clip posted by The Hill in Dec. of 2021 featured Crapo arguing that none of the bill’s provisions were necessary or useful to the U.S., while also noting there is a need to see if the country can stabilize its fiscal policy.

American Greatness reported that Biden’s proposed tax increases include a 25 percent tax for the country’s wealthiest 0.01 percent of families, the corporate tax rate rising from 21 percent to 28 percent, and an increase in the top marginal income tax rate from 37 percent to 39.6 percent.

The majority of representatives in Congress had expected Biden to want no more than a $2.5 trillion increase in taxes, according to the outlet. His request reportedly amounts to double that, beating out any tax increase he has asked for since his party ran both houses of Congress for a period of two years.