In the U.S. you often hear complaints about how the rich are not paying their "fair share" (whatever that is). However, the U.S. effectively has a more progressive tax structure than most of the rest of the world, particularly Europe. The problem is that the more that welfare programs consume, the greater the tax burden that will fall on the middle class.
I was making a serious point about the United States having a very “progressive” fiscal system. The top-20 percent basically pay for government and those in the bottom half are net recipients of that involuntary largesse. I also pointed out a huge difference between the United States and Europe. Governments on the other side of the Atlantic impose much higher burdens on lower-income and middle-class taxpayers.