50 Cent is officially the latest celebrity to hop aboard the Trump 2020 train ahead of the presidential election next month.
The rapper shared a screenshot of an infographic from the CNBC show Power Lunch on his Instagram account on Monday displaying the top tax rates by state under Joe Biden’s suggested tax plan. If the Democratic presidential nominee’s plan were to be put into effect, those making over $400,000 a year would pay 62.6% in taxes in California, 62% in New York City, 60% in New Jersey, and 58% in New York state.
50 Cent had a strong reaction to those numbers, writing on social media, “WHAT THE FUCK! (VOTE For TRUMP) IM OUT, FUCK NEW YORK The KNICKS never win anyway.” He added, “I don’t care Trump doesn’t like black people 62% of you out of ya fucking mind,” seemingly conflating the percentage of NYC’s population that would have to pay those taxes with the tax rate a small segment of the population would actually pay.
But outrage over a rise in taxes applied exclusively to those who make over $400,000 a year isn’t exactly a rallying point for the masses. In 2018, the U.S. Census Bureau listed the annual median personal income at $33,706. In fact, earning $400,000 would easily put you in the top 1% of earners in almost every state. And if Biden’s tax plan were to be fully implemented with no alterations, over the next decade it would raise $1.6 to $1.9 trillion from corporations, $1.0 to $1.2 trillion from high earners through income tax, and $800 billion to $1 trillion from Social Security payroll taxes on high-wage earners, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
This recent endorsement also seems to be an abrupt shift in political affiliation for 50 Cent, who in September 2016 tweeted, “Let us pray, lord please don’t let Trump into office. We will spin out of control.” He also claimed in a 2017 interview with Hot 97 that the Trump campaign offered to pay him $500,000 to help attract Black voters, but he turned it down.
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