No-one paid the top brackets because the tax code at that point was riddled with ways to generate tax losses that reduced liability. The tax reform really was a

No-one paid the top brackets because the tax code at that point was riddled with ways to generate tax losses that reduced liability. The tax reform really was a good thing (unlike 90% of what happened under the Reagan administration) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Reform_Act_of_1986#Passive_losses_and_tax_shelters https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Reform_Act_of_1986#Passive...