Today with @hcrichardson.bsky.social & @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social www.youtube.com/live/aBcPKrw...

This was really really fun.

Season 3 of Democracy In Question is live! I sat down with @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social to dig into the phrase at the heart of American democracy. 🎙️Give it a listen: www.brookings.edu/articles/wha... #DemocracyInQuestion #Podcast

“Free, democratic countries tend to be high-tax countries,” writes @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social. By “sabotaging the state’s capacity to raise revenue,” the Trump administration is putting the future of U.S. democracy in jeopardy.

New from me in Foreign Affairs: "Free, democratic countries tend to be high-tax countries, because taxation and democracy reinforce each other." www.foreignaffairs.com/give-me-libe...

Right by Harpers Ferry, you say

BAH GAWD THAT'S @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social's MUSIC

On March 10 at 4pm-5:30pm, I’ll be moderating a panel discussion at UC Berkeley on a question that’s been on many of our minds (and with increasing urgency) over the past year: “What do the rich owe the rest of us?” Details and registration: besi.berkeley.edu/event/what-d...

The IRS is going into this tax season vastly unprepared. On ABC News Live, @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social warned that with fewer IRS staff focused on fraud prevention and complicated new tax provisions in place, taxpayers should file early to avoid delays and protect their refunds.

"That a representative body should constrain the executive’s fiscal power dates to Magna Carta in 1215... the framers gave Congress alone the power 'to lay and collect taxes' [because] untrammeled executive power over public money opens the door to tyranny." www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/o...

"People tend to associate democratic erosion with election interference and violent police crackdowns. But there’s a quieter tell that a democracy is endangered: the dissolution of laws that protect public money." New article from me and Aziz Huq: www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/o...

So thrilled to share this overview of a timely new book from @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social, as she talks with APEX about "The Price of Democracy" and how battles over taxes define who belongs in 'We the People' bit.ly/4aXIBSj @jacobhacker.bsky.social

Essential new reporting from @jacobbogage.bsky.social : IRS erroneously shared info for "thousands" of taxpayers beyond the 47,000 individuals who we knew had their data shared under the IRS-ICE MOU (data sharing that has since been stayed by the courts). www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

This is a really excellent resource! taxlawcenter.org/the-federal-...

JUST IN: A federal judge has barred ICE and DHS from using taxpayer information provided by the IRS. Judge Talwani says that DHS' view that noncitizens lack 4th amendment rights — combined with ICE use of administrative warrants — is a recipe for abuse. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Non-tax-related PSA: If you, like me, got your measles vaccine in the 1980s, you might need an MMR booster. Your doctor can check your immunity levels (mine did, and I need a booster!) www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and...

Remember, ruining the ability of our democracy to fund itself is the point, not a mistake

Really useful article from Margot Crandall-Hollick and Aravind Boddupalli on what we know and don't know about how much Americans pay to file their income taxes: taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/we-do...

Yale Community: Please join us for a lunch talk at noon next Tuesday (2/10) with @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social about her book “The Price of Democracy: The Revolutionary Power of Taxation in American History.” Register to attend: bit.ly/4r1X46r

I just subscribed: www.startribune.com/subscribe

I've got a new piece in @thetls.bsky.social on the fraught relationship between taxation and democracy -- based on reading of 2 important and very good new books, by @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social & Ray Madoff

Reupping this thread as news breaks that DOGE officials at the Social Security Administration signed a "voter data agreement" with an advocacy group whose aim is to "find evidence of voter fraud and to overturn election results in certain states," according to court filings by SSA today.

📣 📣 Just in time for tax season, we're launching the Brookings "IRS Spotlight": datasets & analysis on all things IRS, safe from govt shutdowns and data purges. Want info on call wait times? Leadership turnover? IRS-ICE data sharing? We’ve got you covered: www.brookings.edu/projects/the...

also, bureaucracy isn't just the vitally important slow boring of hard boards, it can also be a powerful force for a more democratic culture and a freer, less authoritarian society! from @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social's book about the history of taxation in the US:

Please share - @pewresearch.org wants to hire a data archivist who will be an advocate for data users, helping to ensure that our datasets are easy to discover and reuse by researchers, journalists, and the public. pewtrusts.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/CenterExtern...

Five years ago today, many people simply woke up on January 6, 2021 and went to work in and around the Capitol to serve their country in ways big and small, only to be met with violence. Their stories are many, and they are still with me.

Last fall, former IRS commissioner Danny Werfel and I had a great conversation at @brookings.edu about the role of taxation in the preservation of democracy --- and now you can watch it on CSPAN's "Book TV"!

Many happy returns!

A man is BREEDING SNAILS in office buildings and calling it "snail farm" to avoid hundreds of thousands in tax. 🐌🐌🐌🐌. www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...

"Most histories of American democracy start with voting rights or constitutional design," Joe Thorndike writes. "But Vanessa Williamson begins with a different focus: She wants to know who’s picking up the tab." Read the review of @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social's book: https://taxnotes.co/4qfVZHm

Be jealous, tax nerds: I got to talk tax history with the legendary @joethorndike.bsky.social !! taxnotestalk.taxnotes.com/124942/episo...

Thanks so much to @patrioticmillionaires.org for giving me the opportunity to speak at their conference. This was fun!

So excited to dive into this new book by @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social. Taxes are how we care for each other. Those with wealth have always tried to hoard power too. And look where it’s taking us!

“Incisive… Williamson’s surprising thesis is that taxes, when done right, are good for democracy.” @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social's "The Price of Democracy" was featured in the latest @nytimes.com Book Review! Read more here: bit.ly/49a46zk

"The Price of Democracy feels essential today.... Anyone who cares about preserving democracy would be well served by reading it." @npr.org reviews @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social's "fascinating" new history of taxation in America from colonization to the present day. Read more: bit.ly/44VU6qX

Ok this is very exciting I'm not going to lie

TOMORROW: I'm in Chicago! Come say hi at @seminarycoopbooks.bsky.social I'll be talking about my new book with the brilliant legal scholar Aziz Huq! Saturday, December 6, 2025 Seminary Co-op Bookstore 5751 S. Woodlawn Ave 3:00pm - 4:00pm www.semcoop.com/event/vaness...

ICYMI: @sjdemas.bsky.social welcomed @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social on First Draft to discuss how our tax system is one of the first ways we need to go about fixing the U.S. Vanessa’s new book The Price of Democracy is out now! www.lincolnsquare.media/p/taxes-and-... Subscribe to watch today!

LIVE AT 11:00 AM ET - @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social joins @sjdemas.bsky.social live for First Draft to discuss her new book, The Price of Democracy: The Revolutionary Power of Taxation in American History, out now! open.substack.com/live-stream/... Subscribe for free to watch live!

Hey Chicago! I have a book event coming up at Seminary Co-Op bookstore on December 6th! I am thrilled to be joined by legal scholar Aziz Huq. Come say hello! "The Price of Democracy" Seminary Co-op 5751 S. Woodlawn Ave Saturday, December 6th at 3pm www.semcoop.com/event/vaness...

"There’s never been a serious campaign for a tax system that would have made rich people not rich. But the idea that you are beholden, that you are merely a citizen among other citizens, is something that at certain levels of wealth many people find unacceptable." - @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social

🚨 BIG WIN in Center for Taxpayer Rights v. IRS!! 🚨 Court just issued a stay on IRS data sharing cooperation with ICE.

Live now: @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social on the Revolutionary Power of Taxation in American History with former IRS commissioner Danny Werfel

THURSDAY, 10AM: I am absolutely thrilled to be joined by former IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel for a conversation @brookings.edu about my new book, "The Price of Democracy." If you are in DC, join us --- or you can watch online! www.brookings.edu/events/the-p...

The paper didn’t keep this part of my quote, but I see this as further evidence that Trump’s @treasurydept.bsky.social expects inflation to keep going up all the way through 2026 www.independent.co.uk/us/money/irs...

In September, IRS began a $14.2 million contract with Palantir to build a unified API, but little is known about the process by which this contract was awarded or what protections are in place for taxpayer data. - @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social at @donmoyn.bsky.social

Had a great conversation with Ben Tumin at Skipped History! (this screenshot captures accurately how happy I am when thinking about taxes)

Drawing on Thomas Paine’s proposal for a 100% wealth tax and the backdrop of today’s economy—where billionaires line up behind the president and wield immense influence over policy—they argue that limiting vast fortunes is essential to protecting democracy. www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...

📣IN DC this MONDAY!📣Come here me speak about my new book, "The Price of Democracy" with the brilliant @dorianwarren.bsky.social !! Politics and Prose @politicsprose.bsky.social 5015 Connecticut Ave NW Monday, November 17th 7pm

Wow, @vanessawilliamson.bsky.social has a new book out about how taxes uphold democracy. Can't wait to read it! Y'all know I want to make April 15 a public health holiday so we can celebrate the fact that taxes allow us to do together what not one of us can do alone. the.ink/p/watch-read...