One year into the second White House term of Donald Trump, newly released data highlights a widening divide between the economic fortunes of the ultra-wealthy and the lived reality of working Americans. A report published Tuesday by Americans for Tax Fairness marks the anniversary with findings that show unprecedented gains for billionaires alongside deep losses for families reliant on public services and affordable healthcare.
According to the report, billionaire wealth in the United States reached historic levels in 2025. Americans for Tax Fairness found that billionaires nationwide increased their collective wealth to a record $8.2 trillion during the first year of Trump’s second term. That total rose from $6.7 trillion the previous year, amounting to a 22 percent increase in a single year.
The gains were even more pronounced among a smaller group of politically aligned donors. Americans for Tax Fairness reported that “billionaires bet big on Trump and Republicans in the 2024 elections, with just 30 MAGA billionaire families spending $1.4 billion to influence the outcome.” The organization added that “their investment seems to be paying off rapidly, with this clique’s collective wealth growing by $408 billion in 2025, an increase of 37.5 percent from the year prior.”
In explaining the surge, the report pointed to legislation passed in the summer of 2025 by Trump and congressional Republicans that extended sweeping tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. Americans for Tax Fairness stated that “the top 1 percent of households alone will get $1 trillion from this tax package,” underscoring how heavily the benefits were concentrated among the richest Americans.
At the same time, the same legislation included major reductions to public assistance programs. Americans for Tax Fairness described the bill as launching “an unprecedented assault on Medicaid and federal nutrition assistance,” warning that the cuts are expected to leave millions without health insurance or food aid in the coming years while straining healthcare systems across the country.
The report also highlighted the Trump administration’s refusal, alongside Republican lawmakers, to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies that expired at the end of 2025. The lapse sent health insurance premiums sharply higher for millions of people nationwide, further compounding financial pressure during an ongoing affordability crisis.
Summarizing the contrast, Americans for Tax Fairness said, “While American families struggle to pay the bills due to higher tariffs and cuts in public benefits, Trump’s billionaire cronies have never been wealthier.”
David Kass, executive director of Americans for Tax Fairness, said the administration’s economic record reflects a clear shift away from campaign promises made to working people. “After a year in office, Trump and the GOP majority betrayed their promises to working people, instead serving billionaire elites and wealthy corporations,” Kass said. “Trump promised lower prices but enacted chaotic tariffs that spiked consumer costs, and also cut billions from SNAP and Medicaid while ballooning the deficit. He eliminated ACA tax credits, making healthcare unaffordable for millions all to fund trillions in tax giveaways to the ultra-wealthy and large corporations.”
Kass added, “With an affordability crisis and historic income inequality, Americans for Tax Fairness will oppose this administration’s regressive economic policy.”
Concerns about the influence of extreme wealth extend beyond progressive advocacy groups. New polling conducted on behalf of Patriotic Millionaires surveyed 3,900 millionaires around the world and found widespread agreement that extreme wealth undermines democratic systems. According to the poll, 77 percent of respondents believe extremely wealthy people are able to buy political influence, while 62 percent said extreme wealth is a threat to democracy itself.
The survey also found strong support among millionaires for political and economic reforms. Eighty-two percent backed limits on how much politicians and political parties can receive from individual contributors, and 65 percent supported higher taxes on the highest earners to fund public services. Trump’s second term received poor ratings in the poll, with 59 percent saying he has had a negative impact on global economic stability and 58 percent saying he has harmed U.S. consumers’ ability to afford basic necessities.
The polling coincided with the release of an open letter signed by hundreds of millionaires across 24 countries and delivered to world leaders gathered in Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum, where Trump is scheduled to speak. The letter called for higher taxes on the ultra-wealthy as a safeguard for democratic institutions.
“A handful of global oligarchs with extreme wealth have bought up our democracies; taken over our governments; gagged the freedom of our media; placed a stranglehold on technology and innovation; deepened poverty and social exclusion; and accelerated the breakdown of our planet,” the letter stated. “What we treasure, rich and poor alike, is being eaten away by those intent on growing the gulf between their vast power and everyone else.”
Actor and activist Mark Ruffalo, who signed the letter, linked Trump’s rise to longstanding economic inequality. “Donald Trump and the unique threat that he poses to American democracy did not come about overnight,” Ruffalo said. “Extreme wealth inequality enabled his every step, and is the root cause of the trend towards authoritarianism we’re witnessing in the U.S. and around the world.”
Despite the data and growing concern over affordability, Republicans have indicated they intend to continue on the same policy trajectory. The Republican Study Committee recently released priorities for a potential second reconciliation bill that include repealing the estate tax, a change that would primarily benefit the wealthiest households.
Leor Tal, campaign director for the progressive advocacy coalition Unrig Our Economy, criticized the proposal. “After a year of broken promises around affordability and control of government, this is what House Republicans have come up with: legislation that further enriches the richest of the rich at the expense of working Americans,” Tal said. He added, “After the Republican tax law made the largest cuts to Medicaid and SNAP in history, Republicans should stop raising costs on working families and, instead, focus on helping their constituents afford basic items like groceries and stop stripping even more Americans of vital services.”
Taken together, the findings from Americans for Tax Fairness and the international polling show a consistent pattern during Trump’s second term. Wealth at the very top has surged to record levels, driven by tax policy choices that heavily favor billionaires, while millions of Americans face higher healthcare costs, reduced food assistance, and growing financial strain. As Ruffalo stated, “Extreme wealth inequality enabled his every step, and is the root cause of the trend towards authoritarianism we’re witnessing in the U.S. and around the world.”
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