President Donald Trump warned on Wednesday that raising the top income tax rate to 40 percent would push wealthy Americans to leave the country.
“It would be very disruptive because the millionaires would leave,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “Other countries that have done it have lost a lot of people. They lose their wealthy people. That will be bad because the wealthy people pay the tax.”
Trump’s comment comes as some GOP lawmakers consider a 40 percent levy on annual income above $1 million to help cover an economic plan that also seeks to eliminate taxes on tips and overtime pay.
Supporters say the idea could blunt Democratic claims that Republicans favor the rich over low-income families.
House Speaker Mike Johnson signaled little appetite for the move. “I’m not in favor of raising the tax rates,” Johnson said on Fox News earlier Wednesday, adding that he does not “expect” a Republican bill to include higher income taxes on millionaires. “Our party is the party that stands against that traditionally.”
Anti-tax groups inside the party have already mobilized. On Tuesday, former speaker Newt Gingrich posted on X that he had received a message from Trump arguing that higher rates could hurt Republican candidates at the polls.
Lawmakers say the tax would generate $400 billion in 10 years
Still, some lawmakers see the proposal as a budget tool. Non-government estimates suggest a 40 percent rate on income beyond $1 million would generate roughly $400 billion over 10 years—money planners say could add about $500 a year to the child taxation credit.
The current top income rate is 37 percent, a level set by Trump’s 2017 taxation law. Unless Congress acts, that rate will revert to 39.6 percent when the individual provisions of that law lapse at the end of 2025.
Members will return to Washington next week to discuss the details of the wider package. Johnson has pledged to send a measure through the House by the end of May.
The debate arrives as Republicans seek a message before the November midterm elections. Backers of the millionaire bracket argue that a targeted increase could undercut attacks that the party plans to trim social programs to finance cuts elsewhere. Critics say that opening the door to higher rates will encourage wealth migration.
Whether the 40 percent idea survives the closed-door talks may hinge on how strongly Trump’s warning resonates–and on how leaders settle on ways to fund their agenda.
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