It's one of Republicans' favorite lies – that Americans are burdened with the weight of one of the world's highest tax rates. Unsurprisingly, it couldn't be further from the truth. A new report from Citizens for Tax Justice shows that in 2010, the United States collected less in taxes as a percentage of GDP than all but two industrialized nations that make up the Organization for Economic Development. Only Mexico and Chile collect less in taxes.



According to The Think Progress Blog, the U.S. share of taxes may have increased slightly, as the fiscal cliff deal restored Clinton-era tax rates on incomes over $450,000. However, that modest increase isn't enough to move our nation up on the OECD taxation list, and it still leaves us far below the average.



This report comes just one day before the President officially releases his new budget proposal, which will likely include additional cuts to our social safety net, in exchange for modest tax increases. Once again, our nation will ask those in the lowest income brackets to bear the brunt of spending cuts, while millionaires and billionaires aren't asked to contribute much at all. This is unacceptable.



We should not be implementing more Republican austerity – we should be asking those who can afford it to help invest in our nation, and in our struggling economy. In fact, we shouldn't be asking them to, we should be demanding it. The super-rich shouldn't be hoarding cash as the poorest among us are asked to sacrifice. We can start by taxing all income over $1 billion dollars. Find out how at NoBillionaries.com.