It seems obvious that the tax structure would have to be rejiggered by Congress, no doubt over the strenuous objections of the 1%, to make up for the high costs. That could result in, say, a top, marginal 50% income tax rate, or even 90% top rate for the tax on income over, say, one million dollars, as it was under the Republican presidency of Dwight David Eisenhower in the 1950s.
Or it could be termed a one-time only or annual "surtax" for the extremely wealthy of, say, 2% or 5% or 10% or 20%, whatever, added on to their IRS bill.
A POPULIST UPRISING REQUIRED
Of course none of this could happen unless a tsunami of popular/populist anger and determination sweeps over the country and makes it happen. The current disfunction of our politics and capitalist system is building up a head of steam, and conceivably could blow at any moment.
There are a few progressive elected officials on the national scene, such as Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Allan Grayson, Keith Ellison, et al. -- backed up by such progressive thinkers as Paul Krugman, Robert Reich, Rachel Maddow, Bill Moyers, Chris Hayes, et al. (And did you notice the other day that Republican heavyweight Colin Powell came out in favor of single-payer health care?) We can count on their activism and bully-pulpit leadership. But we can't rely on political revolution coming from the top down or happening overnight. It'll take a concerted effort from the grassroots to build the from-below radical momentum necessary to move the system in the required new direction.
(While we're engaged in our radical building project, we can't forget electoral politics. Advice: Forget the 2016 presidential race right now; we need to concentrate on the 2014 midterm election. Money and energy to the more progressive candidates.)
Those of us engaged in that long-term struggle will continue to be buffeted and attacked by an in-place elitist political infrastructure that maintains effective control of mainstream media, a good many think tanks, a good share of the courts and judicial system, along with far too many local, state and federal legislatures.
PITCHFORKS & PROGRESS
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