This excerpt originally appeared in U.S. News and World Report on April 16, 2012.

President Obama is painting millionaires as the top "1 percent" who avoid paying their fair share. However, with respect to fairness, the tax burden for the top 1 percent as a share of total federal income taxes is near its highest in decades. The top 1 percent pay nearly 40 percent of all federal income taxes, while the bottom 50 percent account for only 3 percent.