For Democrats, the Overton window — the range of ideas that are not considered extreme — has shifted markedly to the left in the last few years. It now seems that the window for discourse about economic reality is moving as well.
Take the headline on David Leonhardt's recent New York Times column, summarizing the research of economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman, who are advisers to Elizabeth Warren: “The rich really do pay lower taxes than you.”
No, they do not.
In a progressive system, people with higher incomes are required to pay a larger share of their income in taxes. This is reasonable and fair because people differ in their ability to earn income and because the labor-market rewards for workers of different skill levels are determined by factors other than ability and effort.
