Apr 13

Apr 13 Anti-Amazon Rally

Chicago, Demonstrations, Donald J. Trump, Performance, Protest, Public Declarations

At 4:30 PM today, a group of between 75 and 100 demonstrators gathered outside of what I presume is Amazon’s Chicago corporate headquarters (227 West Monroe) for a rally condemning Amazon, its founder, Jeff Bezos, and billionaires as a class. Several people spoke. Throughout the event, the demonstrators marched in an oval-shaped picket line in front of the building.

Today’s rallying cry was “Billionaires should pay their fair share.” Nobody, however, bothered to define what constitutes a “fair share,” except that whatever the amount might be, it must be capable of funding affordable housing, classrooms, childcare, and healthcare to the satisfaction of those demonstrating. All of those expenditures were grouped together under the slogan, “Fund Our Futures.” Ironically, some of those marching were well over 60-years of age

It is seriously open to question whether those in the top quintile or the top one-percent fail to pay their fair share. According to an article published by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, in 2022 the top one-percent paid 31% of all Federal taxes—individual income, payroll, corporate income, estate, and excise taxes. Those in the top quintile paid 25% of all taxes.

The Tax Foundation reports similar findings. In 2022, the top one-percent paid 40.4% of total Federal income taxes, while the top 25% paid 87.2%. On the other end of the spectrum, the bottom 50% paid 3.0% of total Federal income taxes.

As for progressivity, the bottom 50% of taxpayers paid an average income tax rate of 3.7%, while the top one-percent paid an average income tax rate of 26.1%

These numbers undermine the argument that the rich are not paying their “fair share,” or significantly more than the those with lower incomes. “Fairness” is in the eye of the beholder.

As noted, those picketing today were demanding increased social services. But who is going to pay for those services given a national debt that is fast approaching $35 trillion and a federal government that is running budget deficits now approaching $2 trillion per year? Certainly not the State of Illinois or the City of Chicago. In a February 17, 2026 press release, Americans for Prosperity (“AFP”) noted that, “Illinois has the highest combined state and local tax in the nation at 16.48% of median household income.” AFP then pointed out that Illinois has the lowest bonding rating of any state. Moreover, Illinois’ $145.5 billion in unfunded pension liabilities placed it first in the nation when it comes to unfunded pension liabilities.

According to an August 29, 2025 article on WTTW’s website, the City of Chicago was looking at a $1.15 billion budget shortfall for fiscal 2026. Once again, unfunded pensions pose the greatest problem, with Chicago’s pensions underfunded by $41 billion, or roughly $43,000 per taxpayer.

Although I don’t recall hearing a specific reference to a wealth tax, those picketing in front of Amazon’s headquarters undoubtedly support a wealth tax. As a general rule, people are very bad at assessing large numbers, as was once again evident today. According to a September 2, 2025 article in the Wall Street Journal, there were 1,135 billionaires in the U.S. in 2024, with a collective net worth of $5.7 trillion, which is a lot of money, but relatively speaking, how much money?

To put the $5.7 trillion number in perspective, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the federal government will have a $1.9 trillion budget deficit in 2026, which will grow to $3.1 trillion by 2036. In other words, if the federal government confiscated all the assets held by billionaires, the government would have enough money to eliminate the federal budget deficit for just three years. Then who is going to cover the federal budget deficit?

In short, those marching and chanting in front of Amazon’s Chicago headquarters know how to demand more, but they didn’t meaningfully address how increased social services would be paid for. Catchy slogans are one thing, but how about addressing the issues by using fact-based arguments?

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]