Elizabeth Warren proposes Thomas Piketty-style annual wealth tax

Following recommendations set out in Thomas Piketty's landmark Capital in the 21st Century, would-be Democratic 2020 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren has proposed a 2% annual tax on household wealth over $50,000,000, with an additional 1% annual tax on household wealth over $1,000,000,000, which would bring in $1.9-$2.75 trillion over the first decade (about 1% of US GDP).

The tax would pay for an upgrade to the IRS that would allow it to audit the 75,000 households who are subject to it, and it's backstopped by a 40% exit tax on the wealth over $50 million of any US citizen who abandons their citizenship to escape it.

The tax also includes a revamp of the tax code to close loopholes and expands international reporting regimes to isolate and frustrate tax-havens.

The plan -- which is similar to tax regimes in Spain and Norway -- has been endorsed by Thomas Piketty.

By itself, a wealth tax would begin to curb concentration of assets in U.S. society. The redistributive possibilities are also numerous. Cory Bookers baby bonds proposal, to give every newborn a $1,000 low-risk savings account, with periodic additional payments, that they can tap as adults, would cost an estimated $82 billion per year, less than one-third of the Warren plan. Sherrod Browns child allowance bill, a universal cash payout that would cut the child poverty rate in half, would cost about $108 billion a year, not even half of Warrens proposal. Kamala Harris LIFT Act, a massive series of tax cuts for middle-class families, has a $2 trillion price tag over a decade, again less than the Warren wealth tax.