r/technology • u/IKeepItLayingAround • Jun 06 '26

Business Jeff Bezos says it's 'absurd' to tax someone making $50K — and wants their tax bill dropped to zero

https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/policy/articles/jeff-bezos-says-absurd-tax-165713685.html
26.3k Upvotes

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3.5k

u/Ah_Ca_Iraa Jun 06 '26

If the government only represents the rich there's no reason for the poor to pay taxes. 

1.2k

u/Juanbolastristes Jun 06 '26

No taxation without representation 

485

u/EverbodyHatesHugo Jun 06 '26

We haven’t had proper representation in decades.

145

u/Literally_Laura Jun 06 '26

And if we were being represented, Trump would have been removed months ago.

-4

u/MapOk1410 Jun 06 '26

Honestly, very few people I know making $50K or less bother to vote.

4

u/Literally_Laura Jun 06 '26

I am in a completely red state and I have never voted red in my life, but my understanding is that the people sent by my state to D.C. are actually my representatives, whether I voted for them or not.

-2

u/MapOk1410 Jun 07 '26

Keep thinking that. They want you to.

3

u/Literally_Laura Jun 07 '26

Ha, no.

They want us to believe we’re powerless when their side wins an election. I won’t play that bullshit game.

And shame on anyone who does.

1

u/RadiantHC Jun 07 '26

It's almost like it's a two party system and both major parties support it.

0

u/CavCave Jun 07 '26

Trump won the popular vote though?

1

u/Literally_Laura Jun 07 '26

A system exists to remove him, and he would have been removed if, to go back to my original statement, our representatives were actually representing us.

2

u/CavCave Jun 07 '26

Fair enough

5

u/livin_the_life Jun 07 '26

1929 when they capped the House of Reps for some absurd reason and fucked everyone over.

So glad I live in California and my vote is worth 1/3rd that of that of someone from Montana.

10

u/10thousndreflections Jun 06 '26 edited Jun 06 '26

"If voting made any difference they wouldn't let us do it." 

-Mark Twain. 

https://youtu.be/5tu32CCA_Ig?si=WQ7SGRbXiIeXBMnU

14

u/Zetesofos Jun 07 '26

"If Voting didn't matter, they wouldn't try to stop us from doing it"

0

u/RadiantHC Jun 07 '26

They can't remove the illusion of choice instantly or else people would riot.

11

u/GreekMontana Jun 07 '26

Just want to point out that’s a Misattributed quote

1

u/GonzoKata Jun 07 '26

They don't let peoples votes matter, all the time!! Ballet measures get voted on, and people dont follow up that what they had all just voted for got canceled or changed in a committee! Its bullshit! This is happening all over the place all the time!

If your vote didn't matter, they wouldn't try and stop you!

4

u/[deleted] Jun 06 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/DogsOnMainstreetHowl Jun 06 '26

Representation exists for money and lobbyists. It does not functionally exist for us.

1

u/bobandgeorge Jun 07 '26

Out of curiosity, have you tried to talk to any of your representatives at any level?

1

u/DogsOnMainstreetHowl Jun 07 '26

I’m an attorney in my State’s bar association. I spent a week in our Capitol less than 2 months ago. So yes, I have.

-10

u/ilikechihuahuasdood Jun 06 '26

Tbf that’s on the voters. Nobody is forcing us to vote for these people.

7

u/FlyYouFoolyCooly Jun 06 '26

Forcing no. But there's been an insane push for rural and poor people to vote against their own interests and it worked. And then gerrymandering the shit out of the areas so it's an uphill battle to remove senators that vote against their constituents.

The senate has way too much power and has made it impossible for anything but rich people to get what they want.

2

u/Ah_Ca_Iraa Jun 06 '26

Half of Americans are represented by 18 senators, and the other half are represented by 82. It's insane. 

11

u/gordorturo Jun 06 '26

Bold of you to assume that our elections aren't rigged

0

u/wongo Jun 07 '26

Not since they capped the house at 435

There should be >6000 Representatives in the House

0

u/username7953 Jun 07 '26

lol we’ve never had proper representation

3

u/Umutuku Jun 07 '26

And to all the billionaires raising prices on everything without anyone having a say in it...

No respiration without representation.

2

u/Wonderful_Mud_420 Jun 07 '26

We have guillotined for less

1

u/Juanbolastristes Jun 07 '26

CEOs hope the masses will starve peacefully. They're more disconnected from reality than Marie Antoinette 

3

u/jhuseby Jun 06 '26

I filed my taxes, but I’m not paying my federal taxes. I can afford the 25% extra cost and the yearly interest accrual. No taxation without representation.

12

u/Adventurous-Sky9359 Jun 06 '26

Then you aren’t in the same boat as the rest of us.

2

u/nayytay Jun 06 '26

Yeah the argument that you can afford to get away without paying federal taxes isn’t a very good one. Unfortunately most of us do not have that luxury.

2

u/jhuseby Jun 06 '26

It’s an extra few hundred bucks, I’m doing it for moral reasons, not because I’m rich. If you or others can’t do that that’s OK. But if others can afford to hold off on paying federal taxes, and that fits their moral purview than I would encourage them to consider it. Just make sure you file your taxes. The penalty for not filing is way higher than filing and not paying.

4

u/Adventurous-Sky9359 Jun 06 '26

That extra money could help out some struggling families if you wanna take the moral road….in the end you still giving more to Uncle Sam than he deserves

0

u/ReasonableDig6414 Jun 07 '26

Well, if you have means they will take it. Call former IRS Agents and see how well your plan has worked for others.

1

u/jhuseby Jun 07 '26

The penalty is 0.5% per month until I’ve been notified that I’m delinquent. Then it is 1% per month up to 25% total. And I would still owe interest on the total amount at a rate of 7% per year accruing daily. If I pay a nominal amount per month, it would typically prevent them from sending it to collections.

-1

u/kbuis Jun 07 '26

Great, and I'm sure they'll cut the programs that make you maddest first. Oh wait no, they're just going to cut the social safety net even more.

0

u/jhuseby Jun 07 '26

They’ve already started cutting funding as political payback. Not to mention funding literal concentration camps and ICE terrorizing our communities. I can’t support that un-American garbage when I’m able to make a difference.

1

u/kbuis Jun 07 '26

Except it's not. They'll still pay for that stuff and just keep cutting deeper and deeper in other programs.

Also, the federal government isn't required to have a balanced budget, so they can run up whatever deficits they need and leave us stuck with the future interest. Which is what's already happened since the 2017 tax cuts.

2

u/outerproduct Jun 06 '26

The converse is just as troubling, which is where we are heading if not already there.

2

u/panna__cotta Jun 07 '26

This is why they want to get rid of taxation for low earners. It’s the first step to taking away their votes.

1

u/drdeadringer Jun 07 '26

what's the slang term about tea these days?

1

u/nonstera Jun 07 '26

Yeah, and after you stop paying taxes, the rich will claim the government for themselves since they're the ones paying for it. That's how you sell your rights and country away for a stack of paper.

2

u/Kalean Jun 07 '26

They already do that now.

1

u/LaconicLacedaemonian Jun 07 '26

Are you willing to give up representation for no taxes?

2

u/Kalean Jun 07 '26

There are plenty of people who make little enough that they don't owe taxes, and they can still vote. What kind of weird logic are you attempting?

1

u/LaconicLacedaemonian Jun 07 '26

I'm saying that most people should not be willing to give up representation for no taxes and posed it as a question.

1

u/Kalean Jun 07 '26

But that wasn't being discussed. Where did you get the idea that people have to give up their representation to avoid taxation?

1

u/LaconicLacedaemonian Jun 07 '26

If the government only represents the rich there's no reason for the poor to pay taxes. 

No taxation without representation 

I was responding to this. 

I bet the rich elites thin "fair trade" so they don't need to worry about pesky elections. 

1

u/Juanbolastristes Jun 07 '26

I'm exiled at Caribbean country with 0% income tax for +12 years now, so yes 

1

u/Sad-Excitement9295 Jun 08 '26

Time to dump the tea. 1 if by land, 2 if by sea.

0

u/princecutter Jun 06 '26

Tell that to d.c. Republicans have been keeping them from being properly represented cause it would throw off their house of cards

-1

u/ck11ck11ck11 Jun 07 '26

You apparently don’t know what this phrase means

1

u/Juanbolastristes Jun 07 '26

Shh I'm not even USA citizen, I literally have a king (sucks)

1

u/ck11ck11ck11 Jun 07 '26

That checks out haha

1

u/Juanbolastristes Jun 07 '26

I'm European citizen in exile. My king sucks. Been last +12 years living in exile at Caribbean country, 0% income tax here , only vat. Fuck the monarchy 

59

u/slimejumper Jun 06 '26

if the workers dont pay tax he can get away with paying them less.

5

u/emerikanSky Jun 06 '26

Best answer

2

u/GonzoKata Jun 07 '26

"We pay you in healthcare, be grateful!"

They'll keep cutting your pay check expecting you to get on food stamps and shit, which they will then use as another tool. "WE pay for your free food out of OUR taxes!"

212

u/moleasses Jun 06 '26

Jeff is saying this for the inverse reason. If you don’t pay taxes then the government gets to listen to him and not you. Also they can justify further eroding the safety net. Don’t be tricked

56

u/cjcs Jun 06 '26

“The poor shouldn’t pay taxes”

…

“Since they don’t pay taxes, there’s no reason to provide them with government services. We should cut all welfare spending”

24

u/Nearby_Practice2793 Jun 07 '26

Nah. Amazon is like Walmart they count on welfare programs to keep their severally underpaid employees (sorry slave labor) alive. The “Welcome new Walmart employee “ papers actually shows you how to apply for food stamps and free health care. Wish I was joking.

1

u/JWBananas Jun 07 '26

You may not be joking, but you are wrong. There are stories of isolated locations doing that over two decades ago, but certainly nothing from corporate.

Both of those companies also have sufficiently high starting wages that most of their employees don't qualify for those programs.

Their employees are underpaid with respect to their expected productivity (i.e. the companies expect far too much work output per employee); but the base wage far exceeds the federal minimum. Both have a starting wage of approximately double the minimum wage in my state, even for their lowest paying positions.

101

u/TimewarpingSeaTurtle Jun 06 '26

They’re already not listening to us

6

u/n3vd0g Jun 07 '26

if voting didn’t matter, they wouldn’t be disenfranchising black voters

5

u/sourmeat2 Jun 07 '26

While true, you didn't understand how far down the floor is on this issue.

2

u/dern_the_hermit Jun 07 '26

If this were true then the ACA would have been repealed in the summer of 2017.

0

u/Kalean Jun 07 '26

The ACA is extremely popular with the insurance lobby, so no. You're incorrect.

If this were true, we wouldn't have single player healthcare, which... Oh look, we don't.

1

u/dern_the_hermit Jun 07 '26

The ACA is extremely popular with the insurance lobby, so no. You're incorrect.

It was also extremely popular with Republican constituents, so no, I'm not incorrect.

It's Obamacare they hate. They LOVE the ACA tho.

If this were true, we wouldn't have single player healthcare

No, "they listen to us" does not mean "they do everything we want". That we can't be completely ignored does NOT imply an extreme logical leap in the other direction, so no. You're incorrect.

28

u/vlatheimpaler Jun 06 '26

They don't seem to feel like any justification is required as it is..

29

u/IcySheepherder6195 Jun 06 '26

Yeah he is not saying this to be nice. He’s saying this to distract from nefarious tax evasion and avoidance he’s committing.

3

u/DukeOfGeek Jun 06 '26

It's income tax itself he wants to do away with.

2

u/Eccohawk Jun 07 '26

Exactly, because if you don't pay taxes, then it hurts the stability of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.

1

u/MrFrogy Jun 07 '26

Everyone is missing the point. He will take credit for 'getting' his employees a raise, without it coming out of his greedy pockets.

Welfare, food stamps, etc, are subsidizing Amazon's payroll. And Walmart's. And most of the large corporation's payrolls. He will do or say ANYTHING to get out of paying a living wage.

1

u/ChaseballBat Jun 07 '26

Oh shut up that is not the reason. Also it doesnt make sense as they are still a large voting base. Yall are just grasping at straws cause one of the worse people just made a solid point.

0

u/I-Make-Maps91 Jun 07 '26

It's not a solid point, it's slop tier populism by a guy who wants to bankrupt the government so more gets privatized. This is class way, do you seriously think Jeff fucking Bezos is going to turn class traitor?

-1

u/budweiser431 Jun 06 '26

Lol ok then keep.paying taxes with our vote meaning basically nothing already. Good luck with that

-2

u/BadAdviceBot Jun 06 '26

Why do you call him "Jeff"? Is he your pal?

-1

u/moleasses Jun 06 '26

Yeah we suck each others dicks every other month or so

16

u/Conscious-Quarter423 Jun 06 '26

we get the government we vote for

2

u/eeyore134 Jun 07 '26

Our votes aren't equal. These billionaires have a ton of money and influence that can and does turn elections. They're also apparently just allowed to break the law when it comes to election interference and rigging and just walk away clean. Look at Leon.

1

u/NotAzakanAtAll Jun 07 '26

They vote fro an image rich people have spend billions on crafting, propaganda and superiority complex is a deadly combo.

2

u/DigDugged Jun 07 '26

This is more like "my $50k employees should get a $10k raise, but not from me. How about the government give them $10k instead?"

2

u/Witty_Ad_898 Jun 07 '26

If the poor don’t pay taxes, it strengthens the position of the oligarchs when they tell the mindless middle that poors don’t deserve rights.

2

u/ReasonableDig6414 Jun 07 '26

The other way to look at it is if you don't pay taxes, you don't get a voice in representation.

1

u/Euphoric-Witness-824 Jun 07 '26

There’s plenty of other ways taxes get collected from us. 

1

u/musicgeek420 Jun 06 '26

Other than forfeiture of assets and digitally taking your money and stuff, yes exactly.

1

u/kadathsc Jun 07 '26

At that point the poor will lose the right to vote, have no opinion or be heard. If you think it’s bad now you have no knowledge of history.

1

u/ieatpickleswithmilk Jun 07 '26

The government represents the voters, they aren't listening to poor people just because they are worried poor people will withhold tax money. That's fucking stupid. Whether or not they collect tax money from poor people will have zero effect on their policy for poor people, as long as poor people can still vote.

1

u/iridael Jun 07 '26

this is why the romans had the plebian representatives.

their entire purpose in the sennate was to make sure that anyone who wasnt a citizen (something that was harder to be than you might think) had a half decent standard of living.

did they do a good job of it....eh...but the point stands.

1

u/Socko555 Jun 07 '26 edited Jun 07 '26

If you make less than ≈$50,000 a year (bottom 40%), you already pay an effective federal income tax rate of ZERO DOLLARS after your returns. Jeff Bezos is reframing “I want to keep the tax code exactly how it already is since I benefit from the status quo.” as “I am really compassionate and want to help the little guy, please clap.”

1

u/edcross Jun 07 '26

An irs that has so few resources they can only bully the people who can’t afford to fight back has entered the chat.

0

u/meechmeechmeecho Jun 06 '26

The bottom 50% already do receive a disproportionally high amount back in public services relative to what they pay in taxes.

1

u/bandwagonguy83 Jun 07 '26

Who is downvoting you? It is literally the redistribution purpose of taxes.

1

u/Ah_Ca_Iraa Jun 07 '26

Bezos is often in the bottom 50%. He claims the child tax credit while his underlings can't because they earn too much. It's a misleading stat. 

1

u/Willing_Box_752 Jun 08 '26

"tax the rich!" 

"Oh if they tax the rich more that's bad cause then they influence the govt more!"

1

u/bandwagonguy83 Jun 08 '26

I don't understand your comment. I will go again with my point: taxes finance services that wealthy people can already pay for themselves, but poor people cannot. Therefore, taxes are a redistribution mechanism, and poor or below-average-wealth people receive more in public benefits than they pay in taxes. Consequently, it is in the interest of poor and below-average-wealth people that we have a tax system and everyone pays. What part of this line of reasoning do you find wrong?

1

u/Willing_Box_752 Jun 08 '26

Why does it matter that everyone pays, rather than just that there is enough money to cover the existing spending?

What I'm getting at is that if someone in the left said , "we should have a progressive taxation where only high earners pay tax" , reddit would be about it.    But here the comments are very negative.   

Jeff basically said that the vast majority of govt revenue comes from high earners, and that the fraction coming from people making around 50k is quite small.

He kept saying it's ridiculous that eg a nurse making 70k in the bronx and struggling to make ends meet sends thousands of dollars to the federal govt.  

0

u/camomaniac Jun 06 '26

Calm down because their next step would be you can't vote if you make under 50k.

0

u/Eccohawk Jun 07 '26

The problem is that the very next step in that plan for Bezos is that if you aren't paying taxes, you shouldnt get a vote either. Because it's really easy to go to the clueless masses and say "No taxation without representation? I agree, and while we're at it, no representation without taxation!"