California’s desire for increasing taxes on the rich would backfire
The Washington Post’s editorial board warned against California’s tendency towards aggressive taxation against the state’s ultra-wealthy. The editorial board warned that if these additional taxes are imposed, the desire for California’s billionaires to leave will increase. The board pointed to historic precedence, where an increase of taxes on California’s wealthy led to some leaving and to others reducing their taxable income.
From Fox News:
The Washington Post’s editorial board is warning California that aggressive new taxes on the ultra-wealthy could backfire by driving billionaires out of the state.
In an editorial published Thursday titled, “California will miss billionaires when they’re gone,” the Post’s editorial board argued that the state risks serious economic consequences by pushing wealthy residents away.
The board compared California’s tax approach to teenage boys using cologne, arguing that while some taxation is necessary, too much quickly becomes counterproductive.
“Some [taxes] are necessary to pay for public services, but government eventually reaches the point of diminishing returns — then passes it into repulsion,” the board wrote.
The editorial noted that when California voted years ago to raise tax rates on high-income households, many top earners began leaving the state or reducing their taxable income.
Despite the exodus, a proposed ballot initiative could appear in November that would impose a 5% wealth tax on the state’s billionaires.
Regarding the move to increase taxes, the Post praised the state’s current Democratic governor, noting, “Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) opposes the wealth tax because he understands it would kill the Golden State’s golden goose.”The Post editorial board reported that several billionaires are already looking to leave California ahead of that possibility, including Google cofounder Larry Page and Palantir cofounder Peter Thiel.
The board warned that California’s tax system is already heavily focused at the top, making the state vulnerable if wealthy residents relocate. It cited a 2024 study that found previous tax hikes wiped out nearly half of the expected revenue within a year, as high earners moved away or adjusted their taxable income.
Additional Reading:
Colombo, M. (2026, January 2). California will regret billionaire exodus, Washington Post editorial warns. Fox News. Link.
Editorial Board. (2026, January 1). California will miss billionaires when they’re gone. The Washington Post. Link.
Category: "Teh Stoopid", Democrats, Society
Ahhhh, the great shithole of California.
Except it is not. If it was, people would not be willing to pay more than $1,000,000.00 for a two bedroom to live here.
Most of you brainwashed twits live in literal shtihole counties and states while regurgitating bullshit you hear on your satellite TV “News” channels because you are so fucking stupid you vote for people that won’t even give you the same broadband internet found in most of the rest of the world.
Texas is ranked 50th out of 50 states in personal freedom. Yet you brainwashed drones never call Texas a “shithole”.
Houses cost so much in Cali because of over regulation, and high population density just to name a few. As far as freedom, you got that all ASS BACKWARDS. It took about 5 whole minutes to debunk your bullshit. According to:
https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/most-free-states
It lists your precious Commie-fornia 48th, Texas 21st, and Florida 2nd.
And what is the map below? The Cato Institute for 2023 (most recently completed) has Cali 48th, Texas 17th and Florida 2nd.
Don’t go posting facts and links around here that contradict what the all-knowing Commissar has proclaimed. You know his random stats must always trump real facts.
Welcome back my Conservative friend, I miss your socialist Shtick act
The really sad part about paying such high taxes and fees in California is California educated social betters, such as you, have an inability the live without the state’s help. Not every Californian wants to live within the warmth of the collective. If your point is to project the educated elite of California, you have failed.
Dude. You bragged about handing a suitcase of cash to our enemies overseas and shaking their hands, then you admitted here you chuck bricks with Antifa.
You’re a fucking traitor. No one cares what you think. Oxygen thief. Get fucked.
Chuck bricks? You misspelled suck dicks.
“If it was, people would not be willing to pay more than $1,000,000.00 for a two bedroom to live here.”
That is quite possibly the most brain-dead, indoctrinated statements your tiny terrorist-supporting head has ever made. People are not “willing” to pay that, they are “forced to” in order to live and work in your rapidly emptying state.
I’d love to know who is doing that “ranking” you speak of, as well as your definition of “freedom”.
And on the subject of broadband internet, where’s all that free broadband that Liberal Joe promised, the taxpayers paid billions for, and wasn’t delivered?
Try harder, you suck at defending California. You’re dismissed.
I’m remembering something my dad used to say, something about biting the hand that feeds you…
These pieces of shit don’t feed anyone. They only take.
Most have literally never created anything. Just took credit for other people’s work and stole publicly funded research and tech.
You have no fucking clue how our political economy works.
And you have no idea how fraudulently most of these billionaires “made” their money.
It is a house of cards built on lies, false
promises, futurist grift, fraudulent accounting and corruptly gained government “investment”.
And they don’t pay taxes because they don’t earn money. They live extravagant lives against leveraged “wealth” using their inflated holdings to secure loans that they will never pay back when their house of cards collapses and banks – and the public – foot the bill.
He hates Larry Ellison and Elon Musk because they are takers but will praise government efficiency and oversight as some ham-n-egger exposed millions of dollars being stolen out if public coffers by his precious Somali’s Daycare Mafia scams in Mogi-apolis
So, when every one of these “takers” leaves the state, along with their money, you won’t have any concerns, since they don’t contribute to the tax base? Good luck finding someone else to fund your headlong rush to economic failure while providing free stuff to non-citizens. Enjoy bankruptcy as a state.
Domestic terrorist detected — opinion rejected.
They’re going to “take” their business, employees, taxes, the whole shitaree and go elsewhere. Come back and brag about your economy then.
No. It won’t.
The pathetic mass simpish submission to oligarchs by people like you is part of the problem.
These fucks are taking far more than they are giving back and most have not done a god damn thing for this country except take, take, take… not just public wealth, but influence, our voice, our privacy…and every single one of these pieces of shit have taken credit for other people’s work or outright fucking stole it.
So fuck these fucks. Even in Silicon Valley these pieces of shit are despised by the majority of people in the industry.
That is why so many of them avoid public spaces except in controlled engagements with guest lists and security.
People overwhelmingly want them out of this fucking state and this country.
Look up “Dark Enlightenment” and see what these malignant fucks have planned for this country. And the West.
Hahaha…
Somebody’s little RED panties got twisted into a knot. Who’s going to fund the United Soviet Socialist Republic at California (USSR-C) when all the businesses are gone?
The local drugstore must be closed today and Commissar can’t get his meds.
Or his tampons.
He’s feeling empowered because NYC elected a communist. Still hasn’t realized he’s a useful idiot.
Domestic terrorist detected — opinion rejected.
Wow: when you’ve lost WAPO…
Many people don’t realize this but a wealth tax isn’t just an income tax but realizes the commies’ dream of taxing “wealth” in all its various forms. Your california house is valued at xxxx, give up five percent. Your investment portfolio has an unrealized gains value of xxxx? Give up five percent of that hypothetical value, even though you haven’t sold a single share and it could tank tomorrow.
Here’s the catch: if I have a jabillion dollars* of “wealth” but only a small chunk of disposable cash, I have to sell my assets just to generate the cash to pay the tax burden. And then pay taxes on the sales of assets to pay the original tax burden. Sweet!
As I understand it, it is five years of one percent taxes, not five percent in one year. Good job chasing anyone with money away from your failed state, Grabbin Nuisaome.
*jabillion: valuation of money when seen as nothing but an asset for libs to strip value from in a recurrring basis.