Oxfam America Reports Sharp Increase in Wealth Gap Under Trump Administration
Oxfam America has reported a significant rise in wealth among the top 10 US billionaires, noting their combined wealth increased by $698 billion over the past year. The organization highlights that policies during the Trump administration have contributed to widening inequality in the United States. While bipartisan decisions have played a role, the report particularly cites a 2025 May policy package frequently described by supporters as a significant upward wealth transfer through tax cuts favoring the wealthy and corporations.
Using Federal Reserve data spanning from 1989 to 2022, the analysis reveals that the top 1% of US households gained 101 times more wealth than the median household and 987 times the wealth of the bottom 20%. On average, affluent households saw a gain of about $8.35 million, compared to roughly $83,000 for a typical household. The report further highlights socioeconomic challenges, with over 40% of the US population classified as low-income (defined as earning less than 200% of the poverty line), including nearly half of all children.
Among the 10 largest economies in the OECD, the United States has the highest relative poverty rate, the second-highest rates of child poverty and infant mortality, and the second-lowest life expectancy. To address these issues, Oxfam America recommends policies focused on campaign finance reform and antitrust measures, tax reforms aimed at reducing inequality, strengthening the social safety net, and protecting labor unions.
An important note clarifies that the Oxfam America analysis covers only the 10 largest OECD economies, not all 38 member countries.
