Rep. Juan Vargas, D-Cal., has proposed a bill that would institute a 14.25 percent tax on those who have a net worth of more than $10 million.
The idea for the tax came from President Donald Trump, Vargas said in a statement.
In 1999, Trump said during an appearance on ABC's "Good Morning America" he would eliminate the national debt entirely by taxing all individuals and trusts.
"President Trump was serious when he proposed this wealth tax almost 20 years ago," Vargas' statement read. "In the spirit of bipartisanship, I am introducing the Donald J. Trump Wealth Tax Act of 2017 to allow the president to follow through on his original idea."
"If I were president, it would be passed," Trump said in the 1999 appearance. "I think if somebody else is president, it probably can't be . . . This is a tax paid by the 1 percent, but the 1 percent will be very big beneficiaries with what's going to happen and the positive forces that would take place in the economy."
At the time, Trump said he expected the tax would raise $5.7 trillion.
Vargas, in his statement, said that figure would cover all current debts owed because of the war on terror. It would also reduce the national debt to gross domestic product ratio from 77 percent to 46 percent.
"If President Trump is committed to reducing our national debt and staying true to his original tax proposal, then I will work with him to ensure that his wealth tax becomes law for the future and economic well-being of our country," Vargas added.
Vargas represents the district in California that includes California's entire Mexico-U.S. border.
The president's call to cut the corporate tax rate to 15 percent will likely increase the national debt, according to The Washington Post.
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