Sanders Pushes Massive Government Grab: Proposes Tax Raid and State Control Over AI Firms
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Senator Bernie Sanders has unveiled legislation that would hit America’s largest AI companies with a one-time 50% tax, funneling $7 trillion into a government-run sovereign wealth fund, handing out annual dividends and giving bureaucrats voting power over private enterprise.
Senator Bernie Sanders has announced a sweeping bill that would slap a one-time 50% tax on the stock of AI companies with at least $200 million in annual AI sales, amounting to an unprecedented government seizure of private sector wealth. The plan would create a $7 trillion sovereign wealth fund, managed by a seven-member commission handpicked by the president and rubber-stamped by the Senate, granting unelected bureaucrats voting shares to meddle in corporate decisions and undermine free enterprise.
The legislation proposes doling out a 5% annual dividend, roughly $1,000 per year for each American, in a blatant attempt to buy votes with government handouts. Any extra funds would be funneled into bloated public programs like health care, education, and housing, further expanding the welfare state. Sanders claims the scheme would protect taxpayers from losses if AI company valuations fall, but critics warn it exposes Americans to massive risk and government overreach.
The idea of public stakes in AI firms has attracted attention from politicians and industry leaders, with even President Donald Trump suggesting a more balanced partnership between government and AI companies. OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei have floated similar public-wealth-fund concepts, but Sanders’ plan goes much further, threatening the foundations of private ownership. Sanders insists this radical shift from current ownership patterns is needed to ensure AI benefits the masses, making it a centerpiece of his campaign to expand government control.
