one time 14.25% wealth tax on the super-rich would wipe-out the federal debt
This is not possible in effect without great destruction to industry, its a misunderstanding if anything. If they instigated a killing fields scenario where people above a certain wealth were killed off and their value captured for government means, you would still be losing the effective use of free capital in wider industry not to mention any human value. I assume violence because the money evade capture and most value is not stored in cash but in Cyprus they did a 'haircut' on savings so maybe Im exaggerating but I think its destructive anyway and Cyprus hasnt gone onto strengths from it
The main loss would be lack of investment in future, it cant be understated how highly USA is regarded now in its debt worthiness.
Its become unjustified as US dollar is a proxy for world trade done. Of course its ridiculous to be talking about seizing wealth as a way of restoring a nations fiscal problems but also it has been tried and failed many times, in case anyone forgot communism at least in as a military dictatorship did not produce prosperity. It led to mass starvation, many programs of seizing wealth did not help countries. Tax rates over 90% have been used in western countries, such as UK and USA in the past.
Either the tax rate was avoided by various schemes and bargains or simply the wealth left the country and operated outside it.
The realistic outcome is default or inflation. Politics prefers inflation and sees the stable erosion of capital as a fair tax and its also a way of seizing savings, pensioners especially suffer if not working or tied to working capital. Default would mean strong dollar possibly and a bad reputation for future government borrowing, however business might prosper still and so the tax income allows government to continue to operate.
The possibility Trump is going to negotiate all this seems so unlikely, bad debt absolutely will matter to USA staying as a super power and there is precedent for transition and bargaining of power by large nations being based around financial weakness. Start exporting, run a fiscal surplus and possibly thats a real strong dollar not just a supported one