Sen. Chris Van Hollen Wants To Give 130 Million Americans a Tax Cu
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hey, everybody. Welcome back to the Find Out podcast. We've got a great show for you today. We have Senator Chris Van Hollen, the senior senator from Maryland. Senator, it's great to have you today. It's good to be back with you guys. Thanks. Yeah, we were just joking before that we seem to see you every week or two. So we're glad to see you again. And there's always good stuff to talk about. And I want to dive into this bill that you just released last week, which is called the the sorry, I'm I cannot see without my glasses on. Oh, the working Americans tax cut, the working Americans tax cut, which has an oppressive number of sponsors and also groups that are endorsing this. So, Senator, this is a unique bill from Democrats.
You don't usually see like eliminating taxes for a wide swath of people. Why don't you tell us what this bill is and what what it could do for people who are really getting squeezed by Trump's tariffs and a slowing economy? Well, the fundamental idea behind this bill is exactly a recognition that people are working harder than ever and still being squeezed. So people are making a paycheck, but because of the high costs and prices that they're facing, they're just struggling to get by. And so this is the Working Americans Tax Cut Bill. And the idea is Essentially, if you're making a living wage, in other words, just enough to support yourself or yourself and the family, then you shouldn't be paying federal income taxes.
You should be essentially able to keep more of what you earn. in order to pay your bills and, you know, have a dignified life for yourself and your family. That's the fundamental idea. 130 million Americans will benefit. They'll have a little bit more of their paycheck to keep. It is fully paid for an offset by a surtax on millionaires, right?
What is the Working Americans' Tax Cut Act?
Starting with a 5% tax on the first dollar over a million dollars a year. So if you're making over a million dollars a year, On that first dollar over a million, you'll pay 5%. It's a little escalating surtax. It's about $1.5 trillion, and it provides the revenue to provide relief for people who are working paycheck to paycheck. And I think if I'm reading this correctly, they're all making fun of me because I can't see without my glasses. But there's also a reflection, so I don't do it. But this would essentially mean that anybody who's making the median average income, which is about forty six thousand dollars for a single filer, they would pay no federal income tax. Correct. And I think right now that that's almost a doubling of what it is.
I think it's somewhere in the twenty thousand range now. Is that is that correct? Well, you're right. It's for somebody whose income is a single person, whose income is about $45,000 a year. That's about the median cost of living expense in America. And what that means is that they're just making enough to meet their basic expenses. And so, right. If you're in that category or below, at that income level or below, you would not pay income taxes. It about doubles the number of Americans who are not paying income taxes, from about $30,000, I think, to maybe $60,000 in that range. Yeah, I mean, that's just a tremendous amount. I mean, for these folks, I mean, one of the things that we talked to you about when you were on our State of the Union show was I asked you a very pointed question about, and I'm going to have you answer it again for people who didn't hear it, but has Donald Trump put forward any proposals to actually reduce costs for the American public?
And the answer is... Well, the overall answer is on costs, no, right? In fact, we're seeing costs go through the roof. And as I've said before, including on your show, that includes his illegal tariff tax. And he should give every American household that $1,700 back, and he should do it right now. So costs are going through the roof. And with this war in Iran, in addition to lives lost, we're, of course, seeing upward movement on pressure. In the Republican tax bill, it's important to remember they called it the big, beautiful bill.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:07–2:02
2
What is the Working Americans' Tax Cut Act?
2:02–6:58
3
How will the tax cut impact 130 million Americans?
6:58–10:01
4
What are the funding mechanisms for the tax cut?
10:01–19:55
5
How does Trump's war with Iran affect American taxpayers?
19:55–20:25
6
What are the consequences of the war in Iran?
20:25–21:41
7
How does Senator Van Hollen view Trump's rationale for the war?
21:41–40:22