Not just the Jews: Mamdani is driving the wealthy out of New York

On April 15, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani stood outside the luxury residential building at 220 Central Park South in Manhattan, walked up to the camera, tapped on the screen, and declared: “When I ran for mayor, I said I would tax the rich. Well, today we are taxing the rich. An annual fee on luxury properties worth more than $5 million whose owners do not live here full-time. Like for this penthouse, which hedge fund CEO Ken Griffin bought for $238 million.”

The move was unusual and disquieting: a mayor standing outside the personal home of an American citizen, publicizing his address, mentioning him by his full name, and presenting him as a symbol of excessive wealth and essentially as a parasite. 

Mamdani still carries on as the most radical of social activists, and not like the mayor of one of the most important cities in the world. In a time of increasing political violence, which included the murder of Brian Thompson (CEO of United Healthcare) by Luigi Mangioni in December 2024, turning the spotlight on a private citizen invites unwanted attention. The video garnered 52 million views on X, and Griffin, for his part, did not remain silent.

Mamdani, a democratic socialist who finds it hard to suppress outbursts of sheer communism in his many speeches since being elected to office in November 2025, is in a position of absolute confrontation with New York’s business community, not just with Griffin. The new "pied-à-terre tax" he introduced (which will be applied to luxury apartments used as a second home and not as a permanent residence in the city) is an annual levy on luxury properties valued above $5 million whose owners do not reside permanently in the city. According to him, the expected revenue for the city is at least $500 million a year, which will be directed toward funding children’s healthcare treatments, street cleaning, and neighborhood safety.

The counter-response to the video came quickly. Gerald Beeson, COO of Citadel, sent an email to employees in which he detailed that the company "is about to begin development of '350 Park Avenue,' which will create 6,000 high-wage construction jobs and support the creation of more than 15,000 permanent jobs in central Manhattan. The project, if we move forward, will involve over $6 billion in investments." Suddenly, the construction of the 62-story office tower covering about 167,000 square meters, which was supposed to be completed in 2032, is now in question.

After three weeks, Griffin himself spoke out for the first time on the subject: "It was creepy. I watched the video three times, I had to. The first time I thought to myself, 'This is a joke.' And the second time I already thought it was scary. The CEO of United Healthcare was murdered a few blocks from my house." Griffin was referring to the additional attempt on Trump's life at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, and the violent political climate prevailing in the States.

When asked about the fate of the 350 Park Avenue project, the hedge fund manager said: "We changed our plans in Miami, and we'll have a bigger office building there. What we'll do about the project on (Park) Avenue is still under discussion."

Flight of taxable income: 13 billion dollars and a host of millionaires making exit

The economic problem is deeper than it appears on the surface. According to data from the New York State Department of Taxation, as of 2024, taxpayers earning over one million dollars a year pay 45% of all income tax collected in the state. They make up less than 1% of the population—but fund nearly half of public services. The problem with Mamdani’s move is the same flaw found in all socialist policies—the assumption that everything will remain the same, and only the revenues from the latest taxes imposed will be added to the city’s budget. In practice, many have already announced their intention to leave, and Florida is waiting with open arms.

But not everything is Mamdani's fault: the exodus of millionaires and investments from New York began a long time ago. According to data from the Citizens Budget Commission, New York's share of American millionaires dropped from 12.7% in 2010 to 8.7% in 2022. This decline is equivalent to the loss of more than $13 billion in potential tax revenue. In 2023 alone, New York lost $10.7 billion net due to interstate migration—the second highest figure in the U.S. after California. Over 15,500 high-income taxpayers left New York City and its five boroughs between May 2024 and October 2025, with all the movement going to states with no income tax.

But Mamdani is ignoring this reality. Upon taking office this year, he submitted an initial budget with a deficit of $5.4 billion over the next two years—and to close it, he is trying to raise property taxes by 9.5%. This would be the first increase of its kind since 2001-2002, after the economic recession following September 11. The danger is real: property owners, as expected, are likely to pass the increase on to renters. At the same time, the mayor proposed to withdraw $1.2 billion from the city's emergency fund—which is meant to serve as a reserve for a recession. If the fund drops below the threshold of 7.5% of the budget, the Fitch rating agency may consider downgrading the city's credit rating.

The Socialist Grocery Store and the Iron Law of Socialism

The question is not only how much budget is being allocated, but also where that money is going. The mayor is promoting a plan to open five subsidized grocery stores owned by the city, one in each borough, with the goal of lowering the prices of basic necessities. The first store, which will be built from scratch in East Harlem, is expected to cost $30 million and open its doors in 2029. The problem: near the proposed construction site, five grocery stores are already operating, and just the retail giant Costco is but a half mile away. Additionally, the cost of opening a regular grocery store in that same neighborhood is only around $3 million, and it could open its doors within three months instead of three years.

The dynamics of government-run stores are familiar from history: subsidized products run out quickly, shelves empty out, and eventually the government is forced to take control of the means of production in order to fulfil its promise. This is the nature of socialism: when you run out of other people's money, the definitions grow more and more flexible. Predictably, when Mamdani runs out of second homes worth five million dollars to tax, economic logic would lead to tax regular homes worth five million, then those worth three million, then one million, and then to property in general. All, of course, for the purpose of funding social programs: free buses, “free” health insurance in a country with some of the highest morbidity rates in the Western world, and government-run stores to compete with private business owners—who in any case operate on thin profit margins.

Of course there is anger regarding the gap in quality of life between the rich and the majority of the population—New York is prohibitively expensive, and that is why Mamdani was elected. Residents of New York City currently pay a state income tax of up to 10.9% in addition to a city tax of up to 3.876%, resulting in a tax burden of almost 15% even before factoring in the federal tax, which stands at dozens of percent. But Mamdani's policy works against the interests of the city. An exodus of millionaires or a quick sale of assets will lead to a drop in real estate prices, which will hurt all the city's residents.

The problem is not unique to New York

Mimadani represents a broader problem for the Democratic Party: Americans don't like punishing success, and they don't like it when it's done to others. Of course, it's not only from New York that millionaires are fleeing, but also from California—though that's a story in itself.

One of the current leaders of the Democratic Party is the independent senator Bernie Sanders, who is considered a father figure to Mamdani, and someone who conducts a distinctly socialist and anti-Israel policy in the Senate. Recently, Sanders led a vote in which 40 Democratic senators supported blocking the sale of bulldozers to Israel worth 295 million dollars. After having become a millionaire himself in recent years, he shifted his focus from attacking the rich in general to targeting billionaires and the "ultra-wealthy." Mamdani himself grew up in a well-off household, with a radical professor father and a mother who promoted pro-Palestinian propaganda. True to the socialist tradition, both Sanders and Mamdani preach communal living behind fences and inside luxury apartments.

The negative exodus from New York of the top percentile—those who are almost solely responsible for funding the generous programs the city enjoys—adds to the departure of many Jews in light of the surge in antisemitism, which has increased by hundreds of percent since October 7th. Kathy Hochul, the current governor of New York who came to the position as Cuomo's deputy after he resigned, pleaded with the wealthy who left for Florida to return to New York—with no success. New York has already been on the verge of economic collapse in the past, but what saved it each time were the Ken Griffins of the world, not stifling policies that drive investors away.