Letter to the Editor of the AARP Bulletin

Dear Editor,

The latest AARP Bulletin (Jan/Feb 2024) has an article “New IRS Brackets Could Lower Taxes for Some” showing the top tax rate at 37%. When Ronald Reagan became President, the top marginal tax rate was 70%. In the same issue, the AARP Foundation has an appeal, “Keeping the essentials within reach” which says, “People over 65 have seen the sharpest rise in financial hardship in the last two years. For many of them, essentials like food medication and housing have been beyond their grasp.” Why isn’t AARP advocating for eliminating taxes for those in the two lowest tax brackets of 10% and 12% and raising the top tax bracket a few percentage points? I think a single person making over $600,000 a year could spare a few thousand in taxes so that seniors could afford to buy food and medicine.