US Presidents by Income Tax Bracket

[vcczar]

Here's a list of US Presidents by income tax bracket, starting with Woodrow Wilson. 

• Woodrow Wilson set a tax bracket range of 2% to 15% in 1913.
• Warren G Harding increases taxes with a range of 4% (+2) and 73% (+58)!
• Calvin Coolidge decreases taxes twice:
  • First, with a 2% (-2) and 46% (-27)
  • and then with a 1.5% (-0.5) and 25% (-21) bracket.
  • In all, he reduces taxes by -2.5 and -48 from Harding. 
• Herbert Hoover boosts taxes with a 25% (+23.5) and 63% (+38) bracket range. 
• FDR changes tax brackets frequently:
  • 1) 4% (-21) and 63% (0).
  • 2) 4% (0) and 75% (+12) 
  • 3) 10% (+6) and 81% (+6)
  • 4) 19% (+9) and 88% (+7)
  • 5) 19% (0) and 94% (+6)
  • In all, he reduces taxes for low incomes fro Hoover by -6, but he increases taxes on the wealthy by +31
• Truman reduces taxes with a bracket of 14% (-5) to 73% (-21). 
• Eisenhower increases taxes with a bracket of 20% (+6) to 91% (+18)
• JFK proposed lowering taxes, but he couldn't get anything done in his 3 years in office. +0 and +0 for him. 
• LBJ is able to do what JFK could not and he lowers taxes with a bracket of 14% (-6) and 70% (-21).
• Nixon keeps the LBJ tax, probably reluctantly so. +0 and +0 for him. 
• Ford keeps the LBJ tax. +0 and +0 for him. 
• Carter keeps the LBJ tax. +0 and +0 for him.
• Reagan changes the income tax bracket twice:
  • First, 11% (-3) and 50% (-20)
  • Second, 15% (+4) and 28% (-22)  *This is the only income tax in history to raise taxes on the poor and reduce it for the rich. This is Sheriff of Nottinghame shit. Note: I sent a private message to some of you incorrectly stating that this was a GHW Bush tax. My apologies.
  • In all, from the LBJ-Nixon-Ford-Carter tax brackets, Reagan increases taxes on the poor by +1 and reduces taxes on the wealthy -42.
• GHW Bush signs a bracket of 15% (0) and 31% (+3), after pledging to keep Reagan's tax. 
• Clinton's tax code was 15% (0) and 39.6% (+5.6)
• GW Bush lowered taxes across the board at 10% (-5) and 35% (-4.6). *The low income part of the bracket has not changed since*
• Obama increases the tax on the wealthy by reestablishing Clinton's wealth bracket- 10% (0) and 39.6 (+4.6)
• Trump slightly decreases tax on the wealthy - 10% (0) and 37% (-2.6)
• Biden has kept the Trump tax and who knows if it changes. 

Top 5 Presidents for Lowest Income earners:

1. FDR & LBJ -6
2. Truman & GW Bush -5
3. Coolidge -2.5

Bottom 5 Presidents for Lowest Income earners:

1. Hoover +23.5
2. Eisenhower +6
3. Wilson & Harding +2
4. Reagan +1

Top 5 Presidents for Highest Income earners:

1. Coolidge -48
2. Reagan -42
3. Truman & LBJ -21
4. GW Bush -4.6

Bottom 5 President for Lowest Income earners:

1. Harding +58
2. FDR +31
3. Hoover +23.5
4. Eisenhower +18
5. Wilson +15

Coolidge, Truman, LBJ, and GW Bush are the only presidents to be in the top 5 for low and high incomes. 

Wilson, Hoover, and Eisenhower are the only presidents to be in the bottom 5 for low and high incomes. 

Wilson gets penalized in the above for starting the income tax. WH Taft, who advocated an income tax probably more so than Wilson, might have had a higher tax bracket had he won. 

For all the rhetoric over raising or lowering tax, Obama, Trump, and Biden have been more or less identical. In fact, EVERY president since Reagan has been a low tax president, and arguably LBJ should be put in this category as well. 

The low income tax bracket has not moved since GW Bush, while the wealth bracket is only tinkered with. As such, Bush's tax code is probably the most recently historic one, whereas LBJ's tax code is the longest lasting one. 

 

[vcczar]

Was thinking @DakotaHale might like this as a Coolidge fan. Perhaps, @jvikings1 and @ConservativeElector2 and @Dobs since they’re fiscally conservative and more overtly interested in taxation policy than left-leaning people generally. 

[DakotaHale]

On 12/1/2022 at 10:37 AM, vcczar said:

Was thinking @DakotaHale might like this as a Coolidge fan. Perhaps, @jvikings1 and @ConservativeElector2 and @Dobs since they’re fiscally conservative and more overtly interested in taxation policy than left-leaning people generally. 

usual Coolidge W