63% Of Americans Say Wealth Distribution Is Unfair

In a post below, Robert Reich points out that something needs to be done about the vast (and still growing) gap between the rich and the rest of us in wealth and income. It looks like he's "preaching to the choir". In a new Gallup Poll (done between April 9th and 12th of a random national sample of 1,015 adults, with a 4 point margin of error), we see that 63% of the American people agree (see chart above). In fact, only one group disagrees -- the Republicans.

Reich says the first thing that must be done is political -- we must change the system that allows corporate interests to control our government (through lobbying and massive campaign contributions). I agree. Until that happens, nothing can be done to address the wealth and income gap. But once we have fixed that, how do we go about making the wealth (and income) distribution in this country fair?

This same poll asked respondents about one thing that could be done -- levying a heavy tax on the rich. While the numbers aren't as high as those who consider the wealth distribution unfair, a majority of Americans (52%) thought that should be done while 45% disagreed (see bottom chart). I'm not sure how "heavy" that tax should be (we need a national discussion on that), but I do agree that the rich should pay more in income taxes than they currently do -- and I think that extra money should be used to help the most disadvantaged among us.

One thing that should happen is to get rid of the capital gains tax, which lets the rich pay a smaller percentage of their income in taxes that many in the middle class must pay. This is ridiculous. All income should be taxed at the earned income rate (which most people already pay).

But there are other things that should be also done. There are a couple of things that have huge support among the population -- raise the minimum wage to a livable wage (somewhere between $10 and $15 an hour), and stop the constant offshoring of good American jobs. No one who works full time should have to live in poverty, and American workers shouldn't have to compete with low-wage and desperate workers in third world countries.

Then we need to strengthen unions in this country, and make it easier for workers in every industry to unionize. This would allow workers to negotiate for a fair wage, and allow them to share in the rising productivity they create. Workers need a voice in their workplace, and the best way to provide that is through a strong union.

And finally, we need to re-regulate Wall Street and the giant financial institutions. The Republicans have deregulated this industry, giving those giant institutions an advantage over the common person (resulting in many people getting ripped off -- both in the market and thru their banks on things like credit cards). We could start by reinstitution the Glass-Steagall Act (which made it illegal for those banks to gamble in the market with consumers money), and by putting a cap on the interest that could be charged on credit instruments.

There are probably other reasonable actions that could be taken, but these would be a good start. The problem is that the Republicans (and their masters on Wall Street) oppose them all. It has become clear that the Republicans are the party of Wall Street and the corporations -- and they must be voted out of power. We cannot return to fair and sane economic policies until that happens.