Biden Confirms Tax Hike For Those On USD400k+, But Unlikely To Pass Congress

President Joe Biden has written an oped for the NYT confirming the budget measures reported earlier today in the Washington Post, namely the increase in taxes on those earning over USD400k to pay for Medicare over the coming 20 years. Oped link:https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/07/opinion/joe-bid...

• Biden: "...let’s ask the wealthiest to pay just a little bit more of their fair share[...]. My budget proposes to increase the Medicare tax rate on earned and unearned income above $400,000 to 5 percent from 3.8 percent."
• The budget, coming on Thursday, is seen as a bear trap for Congressional Republicans, and the oped spells this out clearly: "If the MAGA Republicans get their way, seniors will pay higher out-of-pocket costs on prescription drugs [...]. The only winner under their plan will be Big Pharma. [...]This week, I’ll show Americans my full budget vision to invest in America, lower costs, grow the economy and not raise taxes on anyone making under $400,000. I urge my Republican friends in Congress to do the same — and show the American people what they value."
• The prospect of this planned tax hike getting through Congress is slim-to-none given the Republican majority in the House. However, the entire budget document - being given much more fanfare by the White House than would usually be the case - is intended to show divisions between GOP moderates and those on the hard-line right demanding major cuts to spending across the board (including Medicare and the military).