I think you are arguing past me on the first part. They are "payroll taxes", yes. And there is a "US federal income tax" of which they are not, yes. Technically

I think you are arguing past me on the first part. They are "payroll taxes", yes. And there is a "US federal income tax" of which they are not, yes. Technically they do also fit the definition of what an income tax is (wikt:"A tax levied on earned and unearned income"; wikipedia "Retirement oriented taxes, such as Social Security or national insurance, also are a type of income tax, though not generally referred to as such"). More to the point, and I think we agree here, the deception is by framing the discussion only about the "us federal income tax" when that is only 60% of the total federal income/payroll taxes collected. If you tell people that the top 1% makes 22% of the money and pays 40% of federal income taxes it makes them sound oppressed. If you tell people that the top 1% makes 22% of the money, has 35% of wealth and pays 25% of federal income and payroll taxes, the oppression disappears.