Stocks fall on reports that Biden wants to hike taxes on capital gains
22 April 2021
Stocks fell Thursday following media reports that President Biden wants to nearly double the capital gains tax paid by wealthy Americans.
Inside the numbers: Biden reportedly is considering a proposal of a 39.4% top rate on long-term capital gains, up from the current 20% rate. He also is expected to maintain an ACA-related investment tax, bringing the total federal rate to as high as 43.4%, Bloomberg reported.
Be smart: The White House had previously signaled that individual tax hikes would be in its second infrastructure and jobs proposal, following corporate tax increases in its first one, but these percentages are larger than many anticipated.
- One possibility is that Biden is aiming high so that a compromise number will look more moderate. This arguably is what's happening with corporate rates, with the WH proposing 28% and Senate Democrats seeming to settle on 25%.
A big question is if this proposed capital gains rate would apply to 2021 or become effective in 2022. If it's 2022 and becomes law, expect lots of asset sales before year-end.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.