Ten Myths About the U.S. Tax System (Update)

关于美国税制的十个误区(更新版)

Freakonomics Radio

2026-04-08

1 小时 4 分钟
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Nearly everything that politicians say about taxes is at least half a lie. They are also dishonest when it comes to the national debt. In this update of an episode from 2025, Stephen Dubner finds one of the few people in Washington who is willing to tell the truth — and it’s even worse than you think.   SOURCES: Jessica Riedl, budget and tax fellow at the Brookings Institution.   RESOURCES: "How Did DOGE Disrupt So Much While Saving So Little?" by Emily Badger, David Fahrenthold, Alicia Parlapiano, and Margot Sanger-Katz (New York Times, 2025). "Correcting the Top 10 Tax Myths," by Jessica Riedl (Manhattan Institute, 2024). "Spending, Taxes, and Deficits: A Book of Charts," by Jessica Riedl (Manhattan Institute, 2024). "Why Did Americans Stop Caring About the National Debt?" by Jessica Riedl (Reason, 2024). "A Comprehensive Federal Budget Plan to Avert a Debt Crisis," by Jessica Riedl (Manhattan Institute, 2024). "When Does Federal Debt Reach Unsustainable Levels?" by Jagadeesh Gokhale, Kent Smetters, and Mariko Paulson (The Wharton School of Business, 2023). "The Limits of Taxing the Rich," by Jessica Riedl (Manhattan Institute, 2023).   EXTRAS: "Farewell to a Generational Talent," by Freakonomics Radio (2024).   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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  • Hey there, it's Stephen Dubner.

  • And where I live, it is springtime.

  • That's when a lot of people start thinking about two of our national pastimes, baseball and paying taxes.

  • This year, both of these pastimes have some rule changes.

  • Major League Baseball has finally allowed the use of computers to keep human umpires

  • from making bad calls on balls and strikes.

  • And in tax matters, we have a variety of changes brought about by President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act,

  • which was signed last year.

  • Today on Freakonomics Radio.

  • We don't have a baseball episode for you, but we do have a tax episode.

  • This is an update of an episode we made last year with Jessica Riedel,

  • a tax policy expert who had published her list of the top 10 tax myths.

  • In the episode you're about to hear, we have updated facts and figures as needed.

  • And at the end, you will hear from Riedel about what's changed since then.

  • As always, thanks for listening.

  • In Washington, D.C.

  • There is a set of people who move into town when their party comes to power and who eventually

  • leave once their party is voted out.

  • These are the high-profile residents of D.C.

  • The ones who make headlines.