Sen. Kamala Harris is joining Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez by backing a 70 percent tax rate for top earners in America.
The presumed presidential candidate appeared on The View on Tuesday and called such a large bracket “fantastic.”
Harris was asked by co-host Meghan McCain about Ocasio-Cortez’s socialist policies and whether it would be smart for Democrats to move even farther to the left of the political spectrum.
Harris said it is “fantastic” that Ocasio-Cortez is “challenging the status quo” with policy proposals she claims are reflective of the “ideology of the socialist left.”
“You know, I think she’s challenging the status quo. I think that’s fantastic. I think that. You know, I used to teach, before, especially before, the last few years. And the thing I always loved about teaching was when you teach, it requires you to defend the premise. And it requires you to re-examine the premise. And question, is it still relevant?” Harris began.
After essentially endorsing socialism in America, which bizarrely drew applause from the crowd, McCain asked specifically about Ocasio-Cortez suggesting a 70 percent tax on wealthy Americans to pay for her Green New Deal.
“I think that she is introducing bold ideas that should be discussed. And I think it’s good for the party. I frankly think it’s good for the country. Let’s look at the bold ideas. And I’m eager that we have those discussions. And when we are able to defend the status quo, then do it. If there’s not merit, let’s explore new ideas,” she added.
On Sunday, Ocasio-Cortez told host Anderson Cooper on CBS’ “60 Minutes” that the tax rate for the wealthy would have to skyrocket to 70 percent in order to pay for her socialist agenda.
“You’re talking about zero carbon emissions, zero use of fossil fuels within 12 years,” Cooper said. “How is that possible? You’re talking about everybody having to drive an electric car?”
After she claimed it was going to “require a lot of rapid change,” Cooper asked how she was going to pay for her radical wish list.
“There’s an element where, yeah, people are going to have to start paying their fair share in taxes,” she said. “You look at our tax rates back in the 60s and when you have a progressive tax rate system, your tax rate, say, from zero to $75,000 may be 10 percent or 15 percent, etceteria.”
“But once you get to like the tippy-tops, on your ten-millionth dollar, sometimes you see tax rates as high as 60 or 70 percent,” Ocasio-Cortez added.
Later in the segment, Harris defended Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., who last week called on her congressional colleagues to “impeach the motherf*cker,” referring to Trump.
“Honestly, my candid response is that she’s not the first nor will she be the last elected person to curse in public,” Harris said.
“People are feeling very passionate right now in our country, and they’re expressing those views in a variety of ways. I also do believe that in the passion what we also do have to check, as a separate matter, is that there are also very right now powerful voices in our country that are sowing hate and division among us. And we also need to check that,” Harris added, with the crowd applauding her completely deflecting and making it all Trump’s fault.
Harris, who is likely gearing up for a 2020 presidential run, is no stranger to controversy.
Last month, The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust ranked her and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, as the Worst Ethics Violators of 2018.
She also recently compared the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to the Ku Klux Klan.
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