And what is the alleged "steep hike" on the richest 5 percent? A modest few percent income in their DC income tax rate, which partly deductible in most case from their federal payment. Yes, I argue that the wealthy in our community should pay their fair share, now more than ever, making our DC tax structure slightly progressive. Who needs income security now most, the wealthy who can forgo a new Lexus or European vacation this year or our working class majority who now must choose which bill for necessities they should pay first? Why is does LL claim this would be a bad move for our economy? Is his prescription wider income inequality or smaller? Bad health and premature death is robustly tied to big income gaps, and DC's statistics are the worst in the nation (for more on this subject go to my campaign website). And those capitalist economies which weather recessions best are those with the smallest income inequality, not the biggest. As for Reid's comment, I highly value the studies coming out of the DC Fiscal Policy Institute in general and Lazere's in particular. But they have never called for hiking the DC tax rate of our wealthy, especially our millionaires, as I have, just like Obama with respect to federal income tax. We shouldn't expect our DC Republicans to emulate Obama's pledge, but why do our DC Democrats for the most part act like Republicans on this and most budgetary issues? I suggest a reason: they are beholden to their main campaign contributers and to the agenda of the Federal City Council (FCC), the organized assembly of our regional corporate elite. The CEO of the FCC is John Hill, formerly the Executive DIrector of the Control Board,
the financial dictatorship that brought us urban structural adjustment, now reborn in Fenty's administration.