Former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo pushed for wealth “redistribution” through tax hikes on the rich during a Tuesday conversation with the University of Chicago Institute of Politics founding director David Axelrod.
Former President Joe Biden’s 2024 budget called for Americans with over $100 million in wealth to face a 25% minimum tax, according to a March 2024 White House fact sheet. Raimondo told Axelrod she does not think U.S. “democracy can survive” without wealth “redistribution” through raising taxes on the richest Americans. (RELATED: Biden’s Plan To Boost American Chip Manufacturing Is Already Facing Setbacks)
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“I don’t think our democracy can survive a capitalism that’s playing out as it is today. I really don’t. It’s good to be rich. It’s American to want to get rich. It’s good to have a business that wants to be successful,” Raimondo said. “And Democrats made a huge mistake in not acknowledging that. But at the end of the day, you know, some simple things have to happen, like raise taxes on the ultra-wealthy and make investments in schools, infrastructure, training, etc. It’s just — has to happen.”
Raimondo’s remarks only received a smattering of applause, leading Axelrod to quip that those who did not clap were “among the ultra-wealthy.”
“We’ve come to a place where people who have so much money are utterly detached from the rest of us. It’s not just because they’re richer,” the former commerce secretary added. “They don’t fly commercial. They don’t send their kids to public school. They don’t go to the public park. This is bad for democracy and civic engagement. It’s an utterly different American experience — two different Americas.”
“It used to be, okay, fine, the CEO of my dad’s company made a lot more money than my dad, but probably took the subway once in a while, you know?” she continued. “Didn’t have seven homes all over the world. So some redistribution— and it is as simple as more taxes and redistribution — must happen if we’re going to survive. I just really believe it.”
Raimondo also told Axelrod during the conversation that she was open to running for president in 2028.
Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have also each floated tax rates of 70% or more on wealthy Americans.
Republicans in Congress are also mulling tax increases on the wealthy — a significant break from traditional GOP orthodoxy — though they reportedly warn that the hikes may not make it into the final version of President Donald Trump’s sweeping “big, beautiful” budget bill. House Speaker Mike Johnson said on April 23 that he is actively “working against” implementing the tax hike and downplayed the likelihood of such increases.
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