Money is power. And when Elon Musk buys Twitter for $44 billion, he’s buying the power to control information.

During the first two years of the coronavirus pandemic, America’s billionaires grew $2 trillion richer. With that wealth growth, billionaires are buying media outlets, politicians, and elections in order to manipulate our democracy to further rig our tax code and economy.

That’s made easier by a tax code that allows billionaires like Elon Musk to watch their riches increase and pay virtually no federal income taxes, all while most Americans face stagnant wages and the pain of record-high inflation. That’s because there are basically two tax codes in America -- one requires workers to pay taxes on every paycheck and the other allows billionaires to avoid paying taxes for years on the source of their wealth: their assets. They don’t pay taxes until they sell those assets, which many never do since they borrow against those assets to fund their ostentatious lifestyles.

This has to change. Before Elon Musk buys Twitter, he should pay taxes on the hundreds of billions of dollars his wealth has grown in recent years.

Congress must pass the Billionaire Minimum Income Tax to make our tax code more equitable and to close the wealth gap.

These billionaires aren’t just using their wealth to buy luxury homes, cars, and vacations. They’re using their wealth, and the influence it gives them, to undermine our democracy. In the 2020 election, billionaires spent $1.2 billion trying to influence our elections.

In this upcoming midterm election, billionaire Peter Thiel -- co-founder of PayPal -- has already spent almost $30 million through Super PACS supporting extremist candidates who are anti-immigrant, anti-voting rights, and for cutting hard-earned Social Security benefits. Fellow billionaire, Wall Street trader Jeffery Yass, has spent $28.5 million this election cycle to help candidates who believe the 2020 election was rigged and who hold extreme views on issues such as immigration.  

Billionaires should not have a larger say in our political process than the rest of us. The best way to rein in this massive flow of wealth in our elections is to tax billionaires on their wealth gains each year.

Add your name to tell Congress: Pass the Billionaire Minimum Income Tax!