Striking a contrast to the Trump administration, Democrats behind Joe Biden's campaign believe higher taxes on the wealthy and corporations will not slow economic recovery, planning "significant income redistribution" as soon as 2021, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Democrats want to store the taxes on the wealthy and corporations in order to bring more revenue for government spending in the wake of coronavirus impact payments and bailouts, per the report.
"It's all the more important to protect the retirement and security of working [people] and make sure the wealthy pay their fair share," Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who would become Finance Committee chairman if Democrats gain control of the Senate, told the Journal. "We'll be ready to go in January of 2021."
President Donald Trump has promoted his once-thriving economy as benefiting from the 2017 tax reform bill that cut corporate taxes, spurring business investment and growth. Biden wants to return to the Obama administration's tax policies, including raising the corporate tax rate up from 21% to 28%, per the report.
"Joe will come in with a more progressive economic policy than we have seen from a Democrat in a long time," Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., the top Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee, told the Journal. "This is the chance to build an economy that's much more equitable."
Taxing the few wealthy will be popular with most of America, earning votes in November's presidential election.
"Raising taxes on the wealthy and big corporations to help support public investments in things like child care or education promotes economic growth," the progressive Roosevelt Institute's Bharat Ramamurti told the Journal. "It's popular with voters across the political spectrum, too."
Many Republicans would argue there is never a good time to raise taxes, but the Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, says now would be the worst time.
"Raising taxes on the heels of this economic crisis is like punching a hole in your boat at the end of a storm," Brady told the Journal.