Tycoon-in-Chief

The Epistle of James 2:6 asks, “Is it not the rich who are exploiting you?” This question remained relevant from the New Testament, to David Hume, to 1776, until today. In his essay “Of the First Principles of Government” David Hume expressed shock by “the easiness with which the many are governed by the few; and the implicit submission, with which men resign their own sentiments and passions to those of their rulers.” The power of the few to exploit the many was the guiding principle of the founding fathers. James Madison said the government ought to “protect the minority of the opulent against the majority.” James Madison continued “the Senate ought to come from, & represent, the Wealth of the nation.” In “A People’s History of the United States” Howard Zinn commented on the southern lower classes during the Revolutionary War. “They saw themselves under the rule of a political elite, win or lose against the British.” Howard Zinn wrote the majority opinion in early America was that “poor men were always oppressed by the rich.” According to Pew Research, this is still the majority opinion. “A large majority of Americans (76%) say the government is run by a few big interests looking out for themselves.” It’s no surprise to most Americans that three of the richest men in the world, CEOs, and billionaires have flocked to President Trump. Martin Wolf, the Chief Economics correspondent for the Financial Times, explained this phenomenon. President Trump “offers lower taxes and less regulation,” for the few big interests. Ed Farrington told the Wall Street Journal that “relaxed regulation and lower corporate tax rates [is] a potential source of tailwinds for U.S. business.” To translate, Martin Wolf wrote President Trump “would be good for profits.” After all “Lowering the corporate tax rate is merely a windfall for shareholders.” Rana Foroohar, the Associate Editor for the Financial Times, commented “In 2016, Trump talked tough about Made in America and helping working people, but most of his economic policies… rolled back regulation and lowered taxes on big corporations.” President Trump touted his tax cuts in 2017. Economist Joseph Stiglitz wrote The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act “when fully implemented (in 2027)… will increase taxes on a majority of Americans.” He added, “the lion’s share of the tax cut goes to corporations and the very rich.” Martin Wolf wrote it was “a determined effort to shift resources from the bottom,” and “middle of the US income distribution towards the very top, combined with big increases in economic insecurity for the great majority.” Wealth inequality and economic insecurity was a reason tens of millions of people voted for President Trump. Martin Wolf called it “pluto-populism.” It’s “the political marriage of the ultra-rich, seeking deregulation and low taxes, with the insecure and angry middle and lower middle, seeking people to blame for what is going wrong for them.” The people to blame for what is going wrong in America are the rich who exploit us.

Anton Porcari

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