1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

Elon Musk just became the world's first trillionaire. That's not a sign of a healthy economy — it's a sign of democratic failure. Pass a meaningful wealth tax now. Concentrated wealth is concentrated political power. When billionaires can bundle campaign contributions, buy media outlets, and purchase political access, the rest of us lose our voice. Researchers at the National Academy of Sciences have documented exactly this: extreme inequality erodes both horizontal and vertical accountability, the twin pillars of functioning democracy. This isn't a new problem — Plato wrote about it, and post-WWII Japan taxed its largest monopoly families at an 85% effective rate specifically to prevent oligarchic capture of their new democracy. We already have proof this works here at home. Portland DSA won a tax on high earners to fund universal preschool in 2020. New York City is moving on a pied-a-terre tax on luxury second homes. California has a ballot measure for a one-time 5% tax on billionaire assets. The argument that the wealthy will simply leave is a scare tactic — the goal is to make sure no state remains a safe haven for the ultra-rich. One trillionaire is one too many. Act.