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For everyone freaking out about this consider that half the country doesn’t owe the irs any money because they make too little. So poor people are by definition unaffected. In addition, not paying taxes is literally illegal so not sure why you should be able to blow money on vacations to europe when you are breaking the law and owe the people of the united states money.

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>For everyone freaking out about this consider that half the country doesn’t owe the irs any money because they make too little.

45% of tax filers owe no income tax. That's not the same as owing nothing. Independent contractors don't have FICA deducted from their paychecks, and with the rise of gig jobs, there are quite a lot of "poor" people who owe 15% of their income at the end of the year.

The subtle shift is from purely civil penalties (ie garnishment, collections, seizing funds) to denying rights. There might not be a resurgence of debtors’ prison (except for unpaid alimony/child support) but other half-step curtainment of rights like voting are a real possibility.

PS: “Literally” is an unnecessary word.

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