Democrat presidential hopeful Michael Bloomberg has advocated raising taxes on poor people in order to more effectively control their behavior to ensure they live longer.
“People say, ‘Oh, we don’t want to tax the poor,’” but raising taxes on them “should have a bigger impact on their behavior” – for their own good – former New York City Mayor Bloomberg told a Spring 2018 meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
“The problem is in poor people that don’t have a lot of money,” Bloomberg explained, arguing in favor of a regressive tax:
“Some people say, well, taxes are regressive. But in this case, yes, they are. That’s the good thing about them because the problem is in people that don’t have a lot of money. And so, higher taxes should have a bigger impact on their behavior and how they deal with themselves.
“So, I listen to people saying ‘oh we don’t want to tax the poor.’ Well, we want the poor to live longer so that they can get an education and enjoy life. And that’s why you do want to do exactly what a lot of people say you don’t want to do.” ….