Originally Posted by
neanderthal
I mostly agree. You missed a crucial one though (IMO)- eliminate the social security cap. And a minor one; legalise weed.
Now this is how I prioritise it.
Edit Make Puerto Rico a state Make the District of Columbia a State.
Cut Military spending. That frees up money in the budget.
Tax stock trades as suggested.
Tax ALL INCOME. Why should a wealthy person with multiple income streams be exempt from taxes on some of them. The tax needn't be that high (you want to encourage investment and entrepreneurship), but it needs to be taxed. That adds money to the budget as well.
Completely eliminate the SS income cap. This shores up the SS fund.
Increase taxes on companies where the pay disparity between the highest paid and lowest paid is more than 10X. Again money trickles into the budget, or workers have more disposable income.
Legalise weed. Free/cut the sentences of anybody in jail because of it. Tax the fuck out of it and research the fuck out of it too. I use a CBD ointment on my back that works wonders.
Pay incarcerated workers no less than the minimum wage. That's on the companies who source their labour from that pool of workers.
So far we've theoretically brought money into the budget. The spending part is tricky. You want to spend in a way that reaps rewards immediately and down the road.
Pay teachers more. Teaching should be an aspiration and a surefire way to climb up the economic ladder.
...
Free daycare. This puts money in household budgets and time. Now you can pursue that extra accreditation to get that promotion.
Make state college and vocational training for 4 years free. If you finish in three you get one more year free, etc. If you go private school the difference in expense is on you. Free education and state college in jails too.
Environmental tech. Battery back ups in every home. Solar panels, wind turbines, geothermal, etc where applicable. Kinda goes hand in hand with ...
Infrastructure spending. There's too many ways to attack this, I won't bother putting it all here. This is just the order I would do things.
Justice system restructuring/ retraining. This doesn't really go in the back, but in the section with education.
Healthcare is the 800lb gorilla in the room. It won't be instant. Maybe a phasing in of everybody into Medicare and a gradual phasing out of private insurance? Start by lowering the age requirement. And increasing the wage level at which you qualify. Sum like dat. I'd let experts on healthcare like Charles Gabba (sp) run it.