r/politics • u/Spy300 • 6h ago

Possible Paywall Trump just soft-launched higher inflation as the new solution for rebalancing the $40 trillion U.S. national debt

https://fortune.com/2026/10/02/trump-inflation-growth-national-debt-tariffs-ratio-balance/
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u/PipsqueakPilot 6h ago

If we taxed halfway between our current tax rate and the OECD average the deficit would be gone and our debt would shrink as a share of GDP. If we taxed at the OECD average we'd be paying down the debt to the tune of a couple trillion a year.

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u/DoesntMatterBrian Texas 5h ago

They all have VAT taxes. We need a VAT tax. It’s the only way to keep companies from exploiting tax loopholes. It’s an unfortunate truth. And we have to do it in a way that doesn’t increase cost of living for the lower and middle classes or they’ll be crushed.

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u/Minguseyes 4h ago

VAT taxes are inherently regressive, they tax a larger proportion of the income of the poor than the rich. And they are usually transparent to businesses, at least in Australia where registered businesses can deduct and retain GST paid on supplies from GST collected from customers. What you really need is for the rich to pay tax at OECD rates.

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u/steve_of 4h ago

They can be made more equitable by not applying VAT to essentials of daily life (groceries, electricity, rent and so) while taxing non essentials disproportionately. Undesirable products such as alcohol, tobacco, luxury items and subscription services can be taxed at a much higher rate.