Stand up for the facts!

Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.

More Info

I would like to contribute

$
Viral image
Viral image
stated on February 29, 2020 in a post on Facebook:

“Bernie Logic: Nobody can live on $7 an hour. We must raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Also we must raise the tax…

False
By Aaron Sharockman
February 29, 2020

A second viral post pops up about Bernie Sanders’ minimum wage, tax plans. It’s just as wrong

If your time is short

  • Sanders supports raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.

  • But he doesn’t propose raising the income tax rate to 52% for low-wage earners.

  • Sanders’ plan raises the tax rate to 52% for only income earned over $10 million.

See the sources for this fact-check

Let’s be clear. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., wants to raise tax rates on wealthy Americans. And he wants to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour (and pay for universal health care, among other things).

But Sanders isn’t proposing huge tax increases on low-wage workers to make the math work.

A Facebook post on “Bernie logic,” gets the details wrong.

“Bernie Logic,” the post reads.

“Nobody can live on $7 an hour. We must raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Also we must raise the tax rate to 52%. 

“$15 an hour * 52% = $7.80. $15 an hour – $7.80 = $7.20. 

“$7.20 an hour!!!”

Sanders does support a new federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. What he doesn’t propose is raising tax rates to 52% for those low-wage earners.

Instead, Sanders has proposed increasing the tax rate for the country’s highest earners to 52%; the new tax rate would apply to income earned only above $10 million. 

That’s a significant increase over the current top tax rate of 37%. The Sanders campaign says the increase would generate an additional $700 billion in tax revenue over 10 years. ]

But the tax rate wouldn’t affect minimum wage or low-wage workers, whether they earned $7.25 an hour, $15 an hour or $200 an hour.

That’s logic. This post is False.

Our Sources

Facebook post, Feb. 15, 2019

IRS, IRS provides tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2020, Nov. 6, 2019

Bernie Sanders campaign, How Does Bernie Pay for His Major Plans?

Bernie Sanders Senate office, Sanders Statement on House Passage of $15 Minimum Wage, July 18, 2019

Browse the Truth-O-Meter

More by Aaron Sharockman
Jason MIller
stated on October 4, 2020 in comments on ABC's "This Week":
Says Joe Biden stays in his basement.
False
Amy Klobuchar
stated on December 20, 2019 in the sixth Democratic presidential debate:
Says Pete Buttigieg ran statewide in Indiana and "lost by 20 points."
True
Bloggers
stated on February 7, 2018 in a blog post:
"FBI RAIDS OBAMA – Find Massive Secret That Was Hidden For YEARS."
False

A second viral post pops up about Bernie Sanders’ minimum wage, tax plans. It’s just as wrong

Jon Ossoff
stated on June 27, 2026 in a campaign speech:









Donald Trump
stated on June 23, 2026 in a speech in Macungie, Pennsylvania:

David Jolly
stated on June 11, 2026 in a speech:

Marsha Blackburn
stated on June 19, 2026 in an X post:





Steve Robinson
stated on June 5, 2026 in Fox News “The Ingraham Angle”:

Josh Hokit
stated on June 14, 2026 in a UFC event at the White House:


Donald Trump
stated on May 22, 2026 in remarks in Suffern, New York: