Tax Chats

Send us a textLuke 2 tells us that Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem "to be taxed", and while there, the baby Jesus was born. But, what do we know about that taxing from history? Did everyone travel? What was the general tax environment in the Roman world at the time? Did they actually remit a tax, or, what was the purpose of this trip? Jeff and Scott chat with Roman historical Anna Dolganov about these questions, and more.Anna's previous appearance on the show: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1878989/episodes/17860482 . One note: On the podcast we talk about how burdensome the tax imposed by the Romans in situations like this was, in terms of days of labor (a la Tax Foundation's "Tax Freedom Day"). Here is a follow-up note from Anna: "A Roman legionary's salary was about 225 denarii per year, and the poll tax rate in Egypt was 8-40 drachmas per year (depending on location and tax privilege). So, not quite Austrian level taxation, but still quite a considerable sum."A denarii and a drachma are equivalent. So, Tax Freedom Day for Mary and Joseph, based only on the poll tax, may have been sometime in mid-February.

Send us a textJeff and Scott talk with Justin Schein. They discuss Justin's newest film, and the issues and questions it brings up. Justin's newest film is Death and Taxes, which "is a feature documentary about wealth, inequality and the American Dream, viewed through the lens of the estate tax and the very personal story of a father and son at odds over what kind of inheritance we want to leave our kids and our country." Learn more about the film here: https://www.deathandtaxesfilm.com/. 

Send us a textWe start by explaining the Tax Chats DC Tour, 2025, an exclusive live event!Then, Jeff and Scott chat with Pete Sepp, President of the National Taxpayers Union. They talk about the work the NTU has done in the past, and what it currently does, including advocate for legislation that is beneficial to taxpayers and engaging in litigation the NTU believes will bring about taxpayer-friendly changes. Pete gives advice to those who want to make the world a friendly place for taxpayers and want to engage in tax advocacy. 

Send us a textJeff and Scott chat with Ajay Mehrotra, law professor at Northwestern, about the economist Edwin Seligman. They discuss Seligman's academic legacy, his views on progressive taxation, his influence on Columbia University, his students, and his views on tax policy.

Send us a textJeff and Scott chat with Marc Goldwein, who is the Senior Vice President and Senior Policy Director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. They chat about Medicaid, a huge piece in the federal government's budget, and an essential piece of understand what needs our tax system must satisfy. They talk about the program in general, ways in which it was recently reformed under the One Big Beautiful Bill, and what we might do to fix it going forward.