Spread the Wealth: A Survey

Despite the fact that individual Americans give large amounts to charitable causes each year—in effect, a way of transferring wealth from the rich to the poor—the notion of government redistribution raises hackles among many constituencies. Despite these reservations, our results suggest that policies that increase inequality—those that favor the wealthy, say, or that place a greater burden on the poor—are unlikely to reflect the desires of Americans from across the political and economic spectrum. Rather, they seem to favor policies that involve taking from the rich and giving to the poor.