When politicians promise “tax cuts,” most Americans assume their own taxes will go down. But here’s the uncomfortable truth about Project 2025’s tax proposals: while they’re marketed as cuts, they actually increase taxes by $3,000 for a typical family of four earning around $110,000 annually.
Meanwhile, households earning over $10 million would receive tax cuts between $1.5 and $2.4 million each. This isn’t tax reform—it’s a massive wealth transfer from working families to the ultra-rich.
The Numbers Don’t Lie: Who Really Benefits
Let’s break down what Project 2025’s tax changes mean for real families:
- Median family of four (earning ~$110,000): +$3,000 tax increase
- Single-person household (earning ~$40,000): +$950 tax increase
- Millionaire tax filers: $90,000 average tax break
- Ultra-wealthy households (earning $10+ million): -$1.5-2.4 million tax cut
If you’re wondering how politicians can call this “tax cuts,” it’s simple: they’re only counting the cuts for wealthy donors and ignoring the increases for everyone else.
The Shell Game: How “Tax Cuts” Become Tax Increases
Here’s how the magic trick works. Republicans propose massive tax cuts that primarily benefit the wealthy—cuts so large they blow holes in the federal budget. Then, claiming fiscal responsibility, they propose “paying for” these cuts by:
- Eliminating 224,000 teachers during a national teacher shortage
- Cutting education funding by $4.7 billion (a 25% reduction in Title I funding)
- Reducing Medicaid spending by 54% over the next decade
- Converting healthcare programs to block grants, forcing states to cut coverage
When public services disappear, working families pay twice: once through higher effective tax rates as deductions are eliminated, and again by paying out-of-pocket for services that used to be publicly funded.
The Pattern Repeats: Trickle-Down’s Proven Track Record
We’ve seen this movie before. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act followed the exact same playbook, with predictable results:
The top 1% (earning above $835,000) received an average tax cut of $61,000 in 2025, while the bottom 60% (earning under $90,000) got less than $500—less than $1.50 per day.
Corporate tax cuts were supposed to boost wages for everyone, but 2024 studies confirm they only increased wages for the top 10% of earners. The bottom 90% saw no wage growth despite massive corporate tax breaks.
Real-World Consequences for Families
These aren’t just abstract numbers—they represent real impacts on American families:
Education Under Attack
The House Republicans’ reconciliation bill would cut $24.6 billion from education (an 11% reduction) to fund tax cuts for millionaires. That means:
- 5.1 million English learners losing federal support
- 51,000 children losing Head Start access
- 20 million students potentially losing free school meals
Healthcare Gets More Expensive
To offset the cost of tax cuts for the wealthy, Medicare beneficiaries would pay at least $185 more monthly for Part B premiums. Prescription drug coverage becomes more expensive for low-income seniors, while 17 million Americans could lose health coverage entirely.
Why This Matters for Democracy
This isn’t just about taxes—it’s about who has power in America. When tax policy is designed by and for the ultra-wealthy, it undermines the basic promise that government should work for everyone.
Revenue erosion from successive Republican tax cuts for the rich “can fully account for today’s fiscal gap,” according to recent budget analyses. In other words, we wouldn’t have budget crises if we hadn’t spent decades cutting taxes for people who already had more money than they could spend.
A Better Path Forward
The alternative isn’t complicated: progressive taxation that asks those who benefit most from our economic system to contribute proportionally to maintaining it. Countries with progressive tax systems consistently show stronger middle-class growth and better economic mobility.
When we invest tax revenue in public education, healthcare, and infrastructure, everyone benefits—including wealthy Americans who need educated workers, healthy communities, and functioning infrastructure for their businesses to thrive.
The Choice Ahead
The 2024 election presents a clear choice: policies that continue shifting wealth upward through regressive taxation disguised as “reform,” or policies that strengthen the middle class through fair taxation and public investment.
Don’t be fooled by the marketing. When someone promises you “tax cuts” that actually raise your taxes by $3,000 while giving millionaires $90,000 breaks, that’s not tax reform—that’s a scam.
Working families deserve better. They deserve a tax system that builds opportunity for everyone, not just those who can afford lobbyists to write the rules in their favor.