First published 2022
Arthur Laffer examines the income tax and its impact on American economic performance since the constitutional amendment of 1913. He argues that high top tax rates consistently drove wealthy individuals and capital holders to shelter assets rather than invest in productive economic activity. Laffer points to periods like the late 1910s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, and 1970s as examples where elevated rates coincided with economic decline, with the Great Depression serving as the most severe case. Conversely, he demonstrates how reduced tax rates in the 1920s, 1960s, and the extended prosperity of the 1980s and 1990s, plus the brief period in the late 2010s, unleashed capital from protective strategies back into active economic participation. The book presents evidence for an inverse correlation between income tax levels and economic vitality, showing how tax policy decisions have repeatedly determined whether the wealthy deploy or hide their resources.
Genres: history, political-science, economics, non-fiction, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: thought-provoking
Period: 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2010s
408 pages · Kindle Edition · Post Hill Press