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There's no way to make the numbers work if BI is funded by just redirecting existing welfare programs.


Right, any reasonable implementation will result in people with higher incomes having their taxes increased by more than the BI amount. And I think that's a trade a lot of conservatives and libertarians would accept: more redistribution in exchange for less intrusiveness and greater efficiency.


Giving everyone basic income of $10k in the US would be about 2.5T annually (assuming children get nothing). Current tax revenue is only 3.6T and we spend $200-$300B on welfare (assuming you exclude Medicare/Medicade) so it would be a 10x increase in spending on welfare and a 60%-70% tax increase.

I'm not even that conservative and I think that's ridiculous for an amount of money that doesn't even cover the rent in most cities.


Conservatives and Libertarians would never accept BI. Look at how hard they've fought welfare in general.




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