Render Unto Caesar
Today, Americans (including many migrants working in the U.S.) paid their taxes, thereby funding a government that is now controlled by Donald J. Trump, JD Vance, and Elon Musk, as well as the Republican majorities in both houses of Congress. Trump and Musk claim that they are reducing the size of government, but so far the Department of Government Efficiency ‘s (“DOGE”) efforts have been a colossal failure, which should come as no surprise to anyone who knows anything about the Federal budget.
For Fiscal Year 2025, the Federal government will spend nearly $7 trillion. Much of that number represents non-discretionary spending, including 22% for Social Security, 14% for net interest on the national debt, 13% for Medicare, 13% for national defense, and 13% for health, which presumably includes Medicaid. Practically, speaking, DOGE is counting on cuts from the remaining portion of the budget, spending that is characterized as discretionary.
Musk initially claimed that he could reduce government spending by $2 trillion, yet discretionary spending accounts for $1.75 trillion of the total budget. Musk was effectively calling for the elimination of all discretionary spending, and then some. The Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the National Institute of Health, the Federal Aviation Administration, OSHA, the Justice Department, the Federal Transportation Administration, the National Park Service, Housing and Urban Development, and a host of other Federal agencies and programs would vanish.
Even before taking his chainsaw to the Federal budget, Musk reset his goal by reducing it to $1 trillion in cuts. As of today, according to DOGE’s Efficiency Tracker, actual cuts stand at $155 billion, or $962.73 per taxpayer—some dividend. Investigations by the media to date reveal that the $155 billion number is most likely inflated.
Given that DOGE’s efforts have been an abysmal failure, and the Republicans continue to pursue their Holy Grail of extending Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, those who rely on the Federal safety net are deeply concerned about significant cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, public transportation funding, student financial aid, Section 8 housing subsidies, and Veterans benefits.
With the national debt presently at $36.73 trillion, something has to give, particularly because Trump’s tariffs are causing rates on the 10-year Treasuries to rise. The financial press has reported that every 100-basis point increase in rates adds an additional $100 billion to the deficit.
Against that backdrop, Indivisible Chicago and the Service Employees International Union (“SEIU”) held a rally today that began at the bus depot that once housed Greyhound (630 West Harrison Street), followed by a two-block march to the Tesla Store at 717 South Desplaines Street. Symbolically, the march began at what one person who I spoke with described as Chicago’s armpit back in the day, and ended at a luxury auto dealership that sells electric vehicles that are most likely out of the financial reach of many of those marching today.
Despite a modest turnout—100 to 125 people—the organizers put together a textbook example of what constitutes a well-thought out and executed demonstration. While ten people spoke, the organizers kept the program short by holding each speaker to two minutes. Importantly, the speakers delivered a unified message: ‘We don’t like what Donald Trump is doing, but for the time being, there is not too much that we can meaningfully do to stop Trump and the Republicans who are hellbent on tax cuts. What we can do is demand that Illinois strengthen the social safety net. We are calling for a ‘Progressive State Tax Regime’ to finance the shoring up of that net.”
Of all the speakers, the first was today’s most effective despite momentarily losing her composure. I believe her name was Debra—the organizers were supposed to send a list of the names, but they never did. At age 54, she had what apparently was a massive heart attack. The doctor told her she would never work again. I am unclear as to whether she disobeyed the doctor’s orders, but she spoke about reliance on government health benefits to keep her going—presumably Medicaid, and then Medicare.
Isaac Gamoran, an apparent child of privilege, also spoke. Beginning with a lesson that he took from the story of Passover, Gamoran then shifted gears, calling for the implementation of a Progressive tax regime in Illinois, which would include a steeper income tax rate structure, re-institution of an estate tax, and a tax on digital ad sales. Gamoran’s proposals were in line with the day’s overriding demand for a “fair” tax system—in other words, one that imposes significantly higher taxes on billionaires.
I have heard the clarion call for “fairness” for decades when it comes to income taxes, but in the final analysis, “fairness” is in the eyes of the beholder. As a tax lawyer, I view today’s historically low Federal rates as inappropriate given the government’s need for revenue, but unlike Gamoran and the others who spoke, I am not naive. Anyone who is a billionaire has lots of money, but not as much as many believe. According to Forbes, as of the end of 2024, there were 813 billionaires in the United States, with a combined net worth of $6.72 trillion. That’s a lot of money until the Federal government’s current fiscal condition is taken into account.
The Congressional Budget Office projects a $1.9 trillion Federal deficit for the 2025 Fiscal Year. Were Congress to enact legislation confiscating the net worth of all billionaires, the resulting tax revenue would cover just over three years of Federal deficits. While a good case can be made that billionaires should pay more, these numbers demonstrate that to restore the United States’ fiscal health, regular folks will need to pay more in taxes or accept reduced government services. As a country, the United States is living beyond its means. Countless economists have said that current spending trends are unsustainable at current levels of taxation, including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.
Looking for the Illinois’s tax system to come to the rescue, Gamoran conveniently overlooks some critical facts that make his call for Illinois to increase tax levies problematic. First, while Illinois’s income tax rates may be lower relative several other states, Illinois ranks 8th in overall tax burden, with a total burden of 9.67%—New York leads the list with a 12.02% tax burden.
Second, income taxes aren’t the only state and local taxes. According to Tax Foundation, Illinois ranks second highest when it comes to property taxes. Illinois also ranks high with respect to sales tax. Taking seventh place, Illinois outranks both Texas (14th place) and Florida (24th place). Neither Florida, nor Texas impose a state income tax.
Third, while Gamoran and the Progressives may conveniently choose to ignore certain facts—hiding behind the “billionaire” mantra—the Illinois Legislature can’t turn its eyes away from fiscal reality. Illinois is losing residents. The World Population Review (“WPR”) published an article reporting that Illinois is second in terms of population decline. New York leads the rankings.
In addressing the reasons people change state residence, the WPR states:
Some research indicates that taxes, primarily property taxes and income taxes, influence people’s moving decisions. For the people worried about income taxes, Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming do not levy a state income tax.
When it comes to property taxes, it’s best to stay clear of New Jersey (2.47%), Illinois (2.30%), New Hampshire (2.20%), and Connecticut (2.11%), the four states whose property taxes are above 2%. Businesses also move across state lines because of taxes, labor costs, and worker shortages. When companies leave a state, they take their jobs with them. This can cause more people to move to the new state and slow the economic growth of the states the businesses left.
Were Illinois to further increase state and local taxes, particularly by imposing an estate tax or subjecting retirement income to the Illinois income tax, many Illinois residents would head for the exit. With them, would go philanthropic support.
Against those fiscal realities, I certainly don’t want to forget Debra and people in similar circumstances. We as a society should be providing a social safety net, particularly given the country’s vast wealth. Unfortunately, years of fiscal irresponsibility have undermined the country’s and Illinois’ ability to adequately do so.
Ironically, the Progressives, including Gamoran and many of today’s other speakers, should be applauding DOGE in principle. Musk, Trump and Big Balls have unfortunately bollocked the effort, elevating flashy showmanship and inefficiency over considered and methodical efforts to make the government more efficient, thereby reducing costs. We all should applaud efforts to eliminate waste, thereby freeing up dollars that could be used for needed human services. But the effort must be thoughtful rather than one rooted in cruelty and garnering easy headlines.
Earlier this week, I listened to an interview with Frank Luntz, the well-known communications consultant and pollster. He has concluded that the recent decline in Trump’s support is not attributable to the MAGA base, but rather, to a shift among the 20% of voters in the middle. In 2024, Trump moved those voters into his column, which accounts for his victory.
If the Democrats are to recapture the middle, they must tack to the center, which makes an extreme Progressive agenda problematic. I suspect that those in the middle intuitively recognize that if the Progressives prevail, the middle class will be called upon to help finance increases in spending because billionaires simply don’t have enough money to do the job alone.
In this article, I have purposely focused on fiscal realities, but I should close by noting remarks made by ONE Northside’s Zerell Davis, who is a violence interrupter; that is a member of a team that works with at-risk youth trying to detour gun violence. Over the years, media reports have left the impression that these efforts might be nothing more than a make-work folly. In particular, the media has reported that several interrupters have been arrested on gun charges.
Davis did a good job of countering those perceptions by making the case for violence interrupters, offering statistics, and enumerating a number of programs that ONE Northside runs. I would have liked more details, but Davis could only say so much during his limited time behind the mic.
In 2023, Pro Publica published an interesting long-form article addressing the effectiveness of violence interruption programs. Unfortunately, Federal funding for these programs is now on the chopping block.
[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]
The Lead Banner Ready to Head Out
Everyone Is in a Relaxed State
Hair Color Nicely Coordinated with Signage
Not Clear Whether This is a 'Greyhound' Bus Depot Anymore
Waiting for the March to Start
"Who's Gonna Pay to Fix This Mess? Tax the Rich!"
Standing in Front of What Was the Greyhound Station
CPD Setting the Pick
Heading to the Nearby Tesla Store
The Tesla Store
Tesla Joining the Chicago Skyline
The Banners Arriving at the Site for the Speeches
Standing Watch
Layers: The Police, the Demonstrators, the Cars, and the Skyline
Passing the Tesla Store
CPD Standing Watch
Carrying the Backdrop for the Speeches
Hannah Peterson, a Pastoral Candidate with the Luthern Church of America, Serving as Today's MC
Debra, Today’s Most Effective Speaker, Describing Life Following a Heart Attack
Demanding that Billionaires Pay More in Taxes
Lena, with the People's Lobby, Recalling Her Lengthy Rides to High School on Chicago’s Underfunded Mass Transportation System
"Tax the Rich, Fund Transit"
Zerell Davis, with ONE Northside, Discussing His Group's Efforts to Prevent Deadly Violence that Kills Chicago Teens
Healthcare Was on Many Minds
"Progressive Revenue is Our Sword"
Her Sign Speaking for Her
Isaac Gamoran, Who Came From an Economically Secure Background, Enumerating Ways to Tax the Wealthy
Listening Attentively to the Speakers
Illinois Representative William "Will" Davis Ending His Comments with a Powerful Gesture
Illinois Representative Theresa Mah Supports a Progressive State Tax Regime
Listening
Illiniois State Senator Robert Peters Ending His Remarks with a Flourish
The Speakers Were on a Short Leash
Returning to the Bus Depot
Holding Her Sign High
Making the Return Journey
"The People's Lobby”
A Fist Bump for a Job Well Done
Back at the Greyhound Bus Depot
Heading Home
From the Congressional Budget Office
Copyright 2025, Jack B. Siegel (except the first two images in the post, which are copyrighted 2024). All Rights Reserved. Do Not Alter, Copy, Display, Distribute, Download, Duplicate, or Reproduce Without the Prior Written Consent of the Copyright Holder.
