--- title: "Elon Musk Whines About Taxation Plan for Billionaires" description: "Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to whine about a questionable plan by Democrats to tax billionaires, which would cut his wealth by $50 billion." date: "2021-10-26" modified: "2021-10-26" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/elon-musk-whines-about-taxation-plan-for-billionaires" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "income inequality" - "taxation" - "tesla" --- # Elon Musk Whines About Taxation Plan for Billionaires ![Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to whine about a questionable plan by Democrats to tax billionaires, which would cut his wealth by $50 billion.]() *\Image: Getty/Futurism\* After seeing his net worth soar [past a quarter trillion dollars]() — that's 12 zeros, in case you're counting — Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to whine about a dead-on-arrival plan to tax billionaires. The proposal, by Oregon Lawmaker and Chair of the Senate Finance Committee Ron Wyden, would raise the taxes on about 700 billionaires in the United States to finance an expansion of healthcare, childcare, and a child tax credit. But Musk isn't ready to part with any of his enormous pile of money — he'd owe about $50 billion over the plan's first five years, [according to *The Washington* *Post*'s estimate]() — to fund those kinds of initiatives. "Eventually, they run out of other people's money and then they come for you," he wrote in a salty [Monday tweet](). The ultra rich have dodged taxes for decades by relying on gains from securities that aren't taxed unless they sell them, which they aren't often motivated to do. In fact, leaked Internal Revenue Service data [obtained by *ProPublica*]() earlier this year showed that Musk managed to [pay zero dollars]() in income taxes in 2018. The anti-tax sentiment is probably to be expected from Musk, who's in the process of moving much of his companies' operations from California [to Texas](), a tax and [regulations haven]() that could beef up his considerable wealth even more. "The tricksters will conflate capital allocation with consumption," Musk whined on. "Who is best at capital allocation — government or entrepreneurs — is indeed what it comes down to." According to recent research, the top one percent of American earners [squeezed about $50 trillion]() out of the bottom 90 percent between 1975 and 2018 — a staggering shift in wealth distribution. In simple terms, the current ways of distributing wealth are heavily favoring top earners like Musk. Wyden's proposed plan would have the wealthiest ten Americans, who collectively own $1.3 trillion, pay out a total $276 billion in taxes, according to *WaPo*. Subsequent payments would be far less, as the taxes initially fall on the billionaire's lifetime earnings. Musk's complaints will probably be moot, because the Democrats' plan to tax the rich is even facing criticism from within the Democratic party itself. And regardless, experts suggest billionaires could easily skirt around Wyden's plan by creating even more private companies and moving their publicly-held stock there. "I like the politics of it, yeah, I think it’s sensible," means committee chair Richard Neal (D-MA) told the *Post*. "I think the implementation of the plan may be a bit more challenging." Taxing the rich has seldom been a politically popular move, particularly in the US. But given the country's crushing wealth inequality, it's a desperate situation. Having Musk and his fellow billionaires ridicule attempts to even the playing field just a little certainly leaves a bad taste in one's mouth. Musk is doing a lot to decarbonize the automotive market. But when it comes to taxation, it seems like he'll be the first to turn his back on those who need governmental support the most. **READ MORE:** [Democrats’ billionaire tax would heavily target 10 wealthiest Americans, but alternative plan is emerging]() \[*The Washington Post*\] **More on Musk:** *[Hertz Orders 100,000 Teslas for Rental Cars]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()