The founding of America was done by European immigrants and refugees, looking for religious freedom, as well as economic opportunity, without having to deal with the restraints of an intrusive governmental interference or the restriction of having to be born with a silver spoon in one's mouth in order to achieve things of notable purpose. The greatness of America is the greatness that allowed hard working, dedicated, driven, and purposeful individuals and organizations of people with common goals and visions to take and develop their ideas and this land into the force and the massive wealth that it has ultimately become. Not too surprisingly, there are many people, who upon becoming powerful and/or wealthy, wish to see that their largess is passed on to not only their blood-related present generation but onto their blood-related generations to come, which is fine up to a certain point, but taken to the extreme, can easily create the equivalency of European hereditary nobility, ad nauseum.
The most basic problem with lots and lots of wealth as well as lots and lots of power, is those that have it, are seldom inclined to want to relinquish it, whatsoever. It is one thing for those that have these things to enjoy and benefit from it, while they are living, and an entirely different thing for generations or institutions or charitable foundations to hold on to these vast resources in perpetuity. If this country, will not tax appropriately those that have died, and/or will allow those that have departed this world, to escape their full taxation through the wherewithal of all the games that the best lawyers and laws apparently allow, than you have segregated in effect this country, into the very rich and powerful who are essentially eternal, while the rest of us are mortal and not given the same privileges or consideration.
You would think that the estate tax would be very straightforward, so that when an individual dies, they are taxed, and are taxed rather heavily after a given amount is allowed to be passed onto heirs and other desirable people and entities; tax free, to which at the present time the IRS allows $5.45 million dollars to be exempt from such taxation. The balance of said estate, is in theory, taxed at the statutory rate of 40%, but in effect, isn't taxed close to that amount, because appropriate taxes are avoided through all the traditional tricks and loopholes of the trade. This would signify that when they say that "you can't take it with you," it is only literally true in the sense, that you, the person that is now deceased cannot, but your family, your heirs, your charitable foundations, most certainly can, and often with only taking a relatively small hit to its luxury liner.
The fact of the matter is, if America will not appropriately and fairly tax the very rich when they are alive and will not appropriately and fairly tax them when they are dead, then the tax game is effectively rigged or gamed in their perpetual favor, which allows these super-elite privileged people to have their say as to what this country will or won't do, so that it is their voice that determines what America represents and does, and the people, are effectively silenced, now and forevermore.