Billionaire Richard Branson: Taxing the extremely wealthy like me 'makes sense'

CNBC ^ | 2/14/19 | Berkeley Lovelace Jr.

[Lockbox]

Billionaire entrepreneur and philanthropist Richard Branson said Thursday that taxing the rich "makes sense," arguing the extremely affluent have a responsibility to tackle some of the biggest problems in the world, including wealth disparities.

"People like myself are incredibly fortunate," the Virgin Group founder told CNBC's Morgan Brennan in an interview. "I suspect there should be higher taxes for the wealthy around the world and I don't think they would object to that."

Branson — with a net worth of $4.1 billion, according to Forbes — is part of the growing circle of elite business leaders questioning wealth disparity in the world. He said that governments need to get taxes from "somewhere" while helping the middle class and poor.

During the Milken Institute Summit in Abu Dhabi earlier this week, Branson expressed similar views. "We have to try and do everything we can to lift the vast majority of people up, when for the last few years the vast majority have not seen their living standards improve," he told an audience on Tuesday evening.

[silverleaf]

Yeah, this
Anything over a billion goes straight to “ the poor”

[EveningStar]

Nothing is stopping him from giving a few billion to the government!

Exactly!

[Brookhaven]

Rush is right.

These billionaires virtue signal about taxes to keep the leftist mob at bay.

[TADSLOS]

The US Treasury takes personal checks, Dick.

[mindburglar]

Just shoot him and tell his family that billionaires are evil and need to die based on his statements. Then tell them they are now billionaires.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

That’s like asking if a woman is more or less pregnant.

[SaxxonWoods]

The problem isn’t taxing billionaires. The problem is that it’s a foot in the door to punish every producer by slowing inching the net worth number downward as time goes on.

Net worth taxing is unconstitutional.

[Ge0ffrey]

What makes more sense is that he donate a large chunk of it to the private sector and take a huge tax deduction. The money will work more efficiently there.

[ResponseAbility]

Next step, pay your employees more so they can have more control over their lives instead of handing it over to a wasteful and controlling group of freaks in the government.

[Ge0ffrey]

[A simple revision to the tax code will solve this.
CHECK BOXES
Give millionaires the option to raise their own tax bracket brackets by 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 30%]

Margaret Thatcher tried this in Britain. Nobody donated.

[BitWielder1]

There aren't that many ultra-rich to make much difference in the coffers.
Taxing the rich and large companies means less pay for everybody who works for them.
The companies products will be more expensive.
Everybody pays.
Yet another example how envy-driven socialism shoots itself in the foot.

It would make just as much sense to tax the poor, since there are many more of them, they don't employ anyone and it gives them incentive to work harder so they won't be poor anymore.
(I'm kidding. Sort of. Could that work?)

[Afterguard]

He’s a Brit. He should shut up and volunteer a couple of billion a year to the US Treasury. Geeze I get so sick of these foreigners...

[HangnJudge]

Income tax on the wealthy is a waste of time, they know how to duck this.
But just imagine the screaming if there was a tax on total worth,
Say, 5%/yr for total worth >$10,000,000

No exclusions for phony bologna gifts to various Trusts
Trusts also taxed on worth

All these phony Liberals would scream their heads off
Not say’n it’s a good idea, mind you, but it would expose the hypocrisy

[Slyfox]

If all the billionaires would pony up 1 billion each, we could get that wall done pretty quickly.

And, not have to go through the demoncraps in Congress.

[Amendment10]

"Nothing is stopping him from giving a few billion to the government!"

Glad that you mentioned that.

Gifts to the U.S. Government

[goodnesswins]

Yep...the way to end this is to end most 5013cs..and other tax shelters...we in the middle class don’t use the tax avoidance schemes the very rich do. THAT would make them pay taxes on par with us middle class people.

[TennesseeGirl]

To my knowledge, “Sir” Richard Branson isn’t even a citizen of the U.S.A. If anyone is aware that he is, please let me know.

[texteacher]

“If they were really willing to part with their billions they wouldn’t be using the tax shelters created by their Democrat buddies.”

Agree.
Eliminate foundations and tax shelters not available to the middle class. In addition, place a limit of charitable giving which can be deducted from taxes.

[Lockbox]

But he can still transfer money to the poor.

[Reeses]

People like Branson will buy stuff and invest their money in companies that create wealth and provide jobs. Governments typically waste the money

Also important: investors make the world more green while spenders pollute. The poor and big governments spend 110% of their income while the rich rarely spend 1% of theirs. Spending forces the consumption of more energy. That emits more pollution with little in the end to show for it. The USA's downward CO2 emissions are from free market technology advances, not from government spending on Chinese solar cells and windmills.

Going green means wisely making green, not redistributing wealth to big government and poor people to spend. If we give more money to either of them we just encourage their growth in both size and pollution.