If Republicans want to help the middle class with their yet-to-emerge tax plan, they can start by raising the estate tax (aka "the death tax”) rather than eliminating it (one of the few points of agreement in the priorities they outlined this summer). That's the advice of Gene Sperling, who served as national economic adviser to both Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. The estate tax, which has been hammered by conservatives for years, only kicks in for individuals leaving behind about $5.5 million and couples leaving around $11 million. That means that there is a zero percent estate tax for every family estate under $11 million.