Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez slapped back at former Starbucks CEO and billionaire Howard Schultz for calling her proposed 70 percent marginal tax rate for the country’s wealthiest “punitive.”
“Reminder that their plan = no plan. Why? Because for billionaires, things are already going fine,” Ocasio-Cortez posted on her Twitter account Tuesday night.
The freshman Democratic lawmaker responded to a tweet from former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who commented that Schultz didn’t say what his fair tax rate would be, “just that he doesn’t like @AOC’s plan.”
Schultz, who is flirting with running for president in 2020 as an independent, was asked his view on taxes during a Tuesday evening town hall meeting on CNN.
“I should be paying more taxes. And people who are in the bracket of making millions of dollars or whatever the number might be should be paying more in taxes,” said Schultz, who is estimated to be worth $3.5 billion by Forbes.
Host Poppy Harlow pushed him to come up with a number — 2 percent, 10 percent or 20 percent.
“I don’t know what the number is. I think what I’m saying is we need comprehensive tax reform,” he said.
“Ballpark it for people,” she replied.
“I think what’s being proposed at 70 percent is a punitive number and I think there are better ways to do this,” he said.
“What’s the number?” Harlow continued to press.
“I don’t know what the number is. But I’m suggesting that I should be paying higher taxes,” he said.
Ocasio-Cortez has proposed a 70 percent marginal tax rate on incomes above $10 million.