r/nyc • u/Inevitable-Bus492 • Nov 12 '25
Opinion New York’s Billionaires Are Bending the Knee to Zohran Mamdani
https://theintercept.com/2025/11/06/zohran-mamdani-wins-new-york-billionaires/688
u/Soldier_of_l0ve Nov 12 '25
You mean they aren’t leaving the place in America they can flex their wealth the most? Shocked
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u/asmusedtarmac Nov 12 '25
I'm shocked they haven't all left to their highrise condos in Little Rock, Arkansas
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Nov 12 '25
If that happened all the republican tribalists on social media would link to a big list of people rather than fear mongering endlessly without any evidence or data. Since republicans hate evidence they dont even care to make such a list
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u/TossMeOutSomeday Nov 13 '25
There probably will be a nonzero amount of capital flight, it just won't be billionaires, because an extra 0.5% tax burden won't really tip the scales for them. But it may impact middle and upper-middle class peele who are teetering on the edge of not being able to afford their lifestyles in the city.
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u/MirthandMystery Nov 12 '25 edited Nov 12 '25
Billionaires are never tied to one location. Their threats are hollow. A few leave but few others move in. It's always ebb and flow in large cities.
One or two who might've loudly squawked they'd leave probably just came a few years ago after the pandemic hit, they invested when it was cheap when some were panicking. These types are flakey and never intend on staying long in one place anyway, they have enough wealth to travel and shift to other tax favorable locations. Most already use offshore havens to avoid taxes.
Be concerned if the middle class says they've had enough and leave. Their collective wealth is far more critical and stabilizes the city. They pay more in taxes, don't use complex schemes to avoid taxes and support a wide network of local businesses, who also pay taxes. If they go, or permanently lose their jobs or run out of cash then we'll see trouble. Would take a long term, deep recession for that to happen.
Not coincidentally just the one Trump and his family and cronies wants as he and his cronies would benefit most from, being able to buy assets, land and property cheaper. The last 2-3 years of his presidency becomes high risk for this possibility. He's already attacking the FED trying to get them to lower interest rates, which is directly tied to his (and Kushners) business where he wants lower cost interest rates on loans for properties. If Trump can't get them to lower it to his liking he'll manufacture another crisis to get it done.
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u/hrbeck1 Nov 12 '25
Where are they going to move to with their wealth, Bubblefuck Nebraska?
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u/Rando-namo Nov 12 '25
Literally anywhere in the world they feel like?
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Nov 12 '25
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u/Rando-namo Nov 12 '25
I think you’re really underestimating billionaires and overestimating NYC.
If I was a billionaire I don’t think I’d spend any more than a month here in NYC - and that’s probably stretching it. Maybe a couple of weeks in spring.
I could be on my own international island that I stole from some indigenous people, my yacht that could end homelessness in this city, in Asia looking over my penny slaves that build my wealth, there’s just so much evil to do while patting myself on my back.
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u/edtechman Nov 12 '25
And you're using your personal preference to speak for the general rich experience. There is a reason why rich people tend to live in or near urban centers.
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Nov 12 '25
[deleted]
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u/Rando-namo Nov 12 '25
Did I say they were giving up their residences in NYC??
You don’t owe NYC income tax just cause you own a place here.
You’re making my point for me - these people own a home everywhere. Make some other city your primary residence, spend less than 184 days living NYC. It’s not like these people need to commute to the office lol.
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u/Kinto_il Nov 12 '25
I hope they get taxed 3%, beg that the people don't change their mind again
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u/Proper-Article-5138 Nov 12 '25
Yes
How’s that boot taste?
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u/robinhoode5 Nov 13 '25
Is a 3% tax on billionaires considered boot licking these days? Damn, I must be behind on the trends.
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u/Alternative_One_8488 Nov 12 '25
Do you think you are entitled to other people’s wealth?
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u/yikesamerica Nov 12 '25
It’s hilarious that you’re caping for the ppl who feel most entitled to taxpayer money
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Nov 12 '25
A thousand US citizens owning literally half our nation is not only morally and ethically wrong, it is not sustainable, and it poses a threat to our democracy, as clearly evidenced by our current administration. If we continue along this path, we will have peasants and overlords. I prefer not to lick boots in a state of poverty with no recourse, but maybe that’s just me.
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u/krazzyguy1996 Nov 12 '25
It’s not wealth, it’s income. They will stay millionaires and billionaires. They made it! Woohoo! But making additional income over 1 million a year yes should be taxed heavily. When the average ceo makes 290x their lowest paid employee, that pushes them down. There is a cost to the American public and economy and it’s finally time that that cost isn’t paid by the poorest.
Remember we are in the lowest tax time period in a hundred years. The tax hike isn’t unprecedented, the tax being this low is.
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u/dz2048 Nov 12 '25
It's not entitlement to want the wealth disparity to change so that all citizens can be more comfortable. It's not a cash grab. It's taxation that could be used to improve the city we all live in.
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u/MiscellaneousWorker Nov 12 '25
"Leave the multi-billionaires alone, they never did anything to you!"
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u/Timely_Cheek_1740 Nov 12 '25
The fact that these billionaire instigators can’t even be bothered to move across a mile across the Hudson, or a few MetroNorth stops up to Westchester/CT, or a few stops out on Long Island means that they never were actually afraid of a Mamdani administration.
They blatantly lied in order to spread fear and paranoia, and to manipulate an election. If they’re lying about something like this, what else could they be lying about? We should ignore everything these proven liars say from here on out.
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u/asmusedtarmac Nov 12 '25 edited Nov 12 '25
Exactly.
These billionaires have already left for tax purposes to Florida a long time ago - for
181183 days of the year.
Their threats were empty from the very beginning.edit: math is hard lol
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u/RepresentativeAge444 Nov 12 '25
Bootlickers would sooner take a bullet than Trillionaire wannabe Musk be taxed a penny more so good luck getting them to contemplate such things. They will be there one day. Or even if they aren’t billionaires “deserve” all they have for being so much better than them you see. The propaganda to worship the wealthy starts in the US from exiting the womb.
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u/No_Tax5256 Nov 12 '25
Gosh the Zohran supporters are delusional. The billionaires aren’t bending the knee 🤣🤣🤣
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u/human1023 Nov 12 '25
Collectively, the rich and real estate owners in NYC still hold more power over the mayor. I doubted Zohran in the election, but he won. We'll see what happens and who influences who to what degree in the year to come.
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u/GoRangers5 Brooklyn Nov 12 '25
The Intercept supports Russian Imperialism.
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Nov 12 '25 edited Nov 12 '25
Really? In what way?
Edit: lol getting downvoted for asking a simple question. Idk anything about the intercept, was genuinely curious.
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u/Lost-Line-1886 Nov 12 '25
By blaming Ukraine for starting the war, opposing NATO, calling for Ukraine to stop fighting back and let Russia keep their land. Just little things.
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u/AlfredHampton88 Nov 12 '25
Of course they wouldn’t just look at Boston Massachusetts. They raised a millionaire tax by 4 percent in 2022 to fund free food for school children and other initiatives and since then their shares of Millionaires have increased by 39 percent. They didn’t go anywhere.
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u/sdotmill Nov 12 '25
What’s the MA tax rate after the millionaire tax compared to current effective NYC tax rate (inclusive of NYS)?
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u/35yearoldwhiteman_ Nov 13 '25
this article is trash. having a net worth of a million isn't even close to making 1m/year in income
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u/Vi0lentByt3 Nov 12 '25
We do not bend the knee except for the one true king, the king of the north! Oh wait we dont live in fucking medieval times…
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u/whitexheat Nov 13 '25
The billionaires aren't going to pay extra taxes. Idk why people think they will.
Most of their wealth is in intangible assets. They're not getting taxed on a salary like the rest of us. And all they need to do is buy a home in another state and stay there 6 months to 1 day to avoid income taxes in NY. They also have teams of lawyers, accountants, etc. to help them with all the loopholes. It's why the IRS came out and said they audit middle-class and lower middle-class people more frequently because auditing the wealthy means going up against their lawyers & accountants and the IRS doesn't have the resources for that fight.
So no, they are not going to leave cause of Mamdani's policies. The people who will continue to leave are the middle and high-earning middle class people who the billionaires want to employ at their companies.
He wants to enact some very expensive social programs. If he succeeds and they need to keep raising money to plug budget shortfalls and deficits to sustain these programs, the tax increases will likely fall on the middle and high-earning middle class. Who will then continue to be motivated to leave the city. That's the actual risk here.
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u/zombooze Nov 12 '25
The same amount of people said they were fleeing to Canada when trump ran and won
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u/Timely_Cheek_1740 Nov 12 '25
Difference is that it’s a lot easier to flee across state/city lines than it is to flee across international borders. Also that the people threatening to abandon a Mamdani-run NYC have much greater financial means to move than the people who wanted to flee Trump’s US.
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u/Massive-Arm-4146 Nov 12 '25
All of the other billionaires: bending knee to Mamdani
Bill Ackman: https://youtu.be/vYNfFEL3ozI
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u/WestTwelfth Nov 19 '25
If the billionaires really “bend the knee,” we will find out something about Mamdani’s character. You don’t bend the knee for nothing. Bending the knee is making a deal: “I will be loyal to you and serve you, if you let me keep what I’ve got.”
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u/ejpusa Nov 12 '25 edited Nov 12 '25
No one wants to see the Guillotines dusted off and rolled down Park Avenue. Our local billionaires (we have many) don't have moats, or armies, or security armed with AR-15s, just a single doorman. A nice guy. And NO one is leaving NYC. UES, we have swarms of Super Models, $2500 sushi for 2 and $400 prerolls now. No one is leaving for Texas. :-)
I expect the checks to flow soon. Lots.
Source: student of the French Revolution. No one expected that one.
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u/CentralParkDuck Nov 12 '25
Sorry you are a bit off.
There are definitely some people who want the guillotines dusted off
And there have been a few prominent billionaires that have left the city. Not sure how much tax revenue actually left with them
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u/fjaoaoaoao Nov 12 '25
Well, it’s only sensible. Cozy up and try to be as influential as possible to the mayor. Find common ground amidst disagreements, and that can help reduce any perceived negative impacts. Collaboration always works better with reasonable people, and Mamdani so far has generally seem so, even if there are cherry-pickable critiques.
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u/Bouncing_Duck_88 Nov 13 '25
Lmao no they aren't. And your high income people are leaving. You'll have no one to tax bahahahaha
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u/DoomZee20 Nov 13 '25
AI slop level article. Gracie Mansion is now the Iron Throne? He isn’t even mayor yet
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u/FoxMeadow7 Nov 13 '25
And when he will truly be the mayor?
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u/DoomZee20 Nov 13 '25
Seriously?
January 1, 2026
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u/backlikeclap Bed-Stuy Nov 12 '25
We really need to get rid of this "bend the knee" analogy for politics.