My name is Ilana Cohen. I spent this summer with the Patriotic Millionaires as the Communications Intern, meaning you may have (unknowingly) seen some of my work on our social media platforms. As my final assignment, the team here asked me to write “A Closer Look” on what I learned this summer, and I was more than happy to oblige.
A Closer Look: Gig workers in America deserve better
Last week, we talked all about the 17-years-long, abysmally low $7.25 federal minimum wage. This week, we are putting the spotlight on the millions of “gig” workers across the country who aren’t even entitled to the minimum wage thanks to the machinations of corporations.
You could say that the month of July is filled with “maliversaries,” which is our word for a bad anniversary at Patriotic Millionaires. At the start of the month, we marked the first maliversary of the passage of Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act which overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy and corporations. Now at the end of the month, we’re marking the 17th (!) maliversary of the last time the federal minimum wage was raised.
Seeing how today is also April Fools’ Day, we thought we’d have a little fun with the holiday—with a Patriotic Millionaires’ twist, of course. Unlike most, we aren’t spending the day cooking up elaborate pranks to play on our loved ones or coworkers. Instead, we created a list of our top five “April Tax Fools.”
A Closer Look: Demystifying the Working Americans’ Tax Cut Act
My name is Holli Woodings, and I’m the Vice President of Government Affairs here at Patriotic Millionaires where I oversee our legislative, policy, and political work. Previously I’ve served as the President of Boise City Council, as a State Representative in the Idaho Legislature, and as a Senior Fellow at the National Institute for Civil Discourse here in Washington, DC.
A Closer Look: We’re two steps closer to a rich, stable, and free country
Americans deserve an economy that, at a minimum, has fair and equitable rules and that guarantees them enough stability to afford their basic needs. And over the past week, Americans are now two steps closer to getting that sort of economy, thanks to new legislation introduced on Capitol Hill.
A Closer Look: The Working Americans’ Tax Cut Act is the greatest thing since sliced bread
If you’re looking for a bold yet surprisingly simple tax framework that has the ability to immediately stabilize the economic lives of millions of Americans, today is your lucky day. Or if you’re merely looking for the greatest thing since sliced bread, you’ve also hit the jackpot.
A Closer Look: States are ramping up efforts to tax the super rich
It’s clearer than ever that the effects of the national rise in economic inequality are spilling over into local communities. With the federal government lacking the necessary urgency to respond to and address the crisis, states are taking matters into their own hands and proposing their own millionaire taxes. From coast to coast, officials have proposed all sorts of measures to raise the wealthy’s tax bills.
A Closer Look: Trump gives the economy a “W.” We give it a “K.”
According to President Trump, the state of America’s union is STRONG, the Golden Age is upon us, and “we’re winning so much that we really don’t know what to do about it.” All true…for multimillionaires like us. For the 86% of Americans who are worried about the price of groceries? Not so much.
A Closer Look: How early labor laws excluded Black Americans
My name is Dr. Kaitlyn Henderson. I joined the Patriotic Millionaires four months ago as the organization’s Senior Director of Wage Policy and Legislative Affairs. I came from Oxfam America, where I was the Senior Researcher leading their domestic portfolio on wages and labor and the staff-elected board member.
A Closer Look: What the Epstein files tell us about extreme wealth
Most of the reporting around the Epstein files has centered on the salacious and horrific allegations against members of Epstein’s elite inner circle contained in the troves of documents. Yet, there has been little public discussion about what the files reveal about how our “Second Gilded Age,” with its unprecedented concentration of wealth, not only shields perpetrators from accountability but makes their crimes possible in the first place.
A Closer Look: A lot to gain by raising taxes on the rich
For this week’s Closer Look, we’ll dive deeper into what The Washington Post Editorial Board got wrong about taxing the rich and income tax rates. Besides the fact they are blatantly shilling for their billionaire-owner Jeff Bezos, we think the Editorial Board is off-base on multiple fronts on their arguments.
A Closer Look: Here’s the skinny on the California wealth tax ballot measure
In late October, news broke that organizers in California had filed a measure, the “2026 Billionaire Tax Act,” to appear on the November 2026 ballot that would impose a one-time 5% tax on the state’s billionaires. Since then, there has been a relentless onslaught of panicked headlines that the proposal will lead the Golden State’s 200 or so billionaires to flee en masse.
A Closer Look: Time to win back our democracies before it’s too late
If there is one thing we want the world leaders at Davos this week to know, it’s this: it’s time to win back our democracies and shared futures by taxing the super rich before it’s too late.
