Last month, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani filmed a video flouting a newly proposed "pied-a-terre" tax — a fancy name for even more property taxes, this time on the city's high-end homes. In the video, the mayor specifically calls out "this penthouse, which hedge fund CEO Ken Griffin bought for $238 million."

Spiking the ball on your opponent is rarely prudent political calculus, especially when you are touting rotten policy. This one bounced right back in Mamdani's face.

Only days after the video was released, Mr. Griffin's company, Citadel, sent city officials a letter stating that it might reconsider a $6 billion development. The project is expected to create 6,000 construction jobs and support another 15,000 permanent jobs in midtown Manhattan.

Mr. Griffin added that he and his employees paid over $2 billion in city and state taxes and made $650 million in charitable donations to New York City institutions.

Mamdani struck a more conciliatory tone after the shot across the bow, sounding more like a scolded pup than cultural crusader. "I want (New Yorkers) to build businesses, to grow our economy and to create good-paying jobs," he said. Mr. Griffin "is an important employer and business leader in our city. ... I do want him to succeed."

The dust-up reveals a truth that will surely be hard to swallow for the left: Socialists need capitalists' money to keep the "warmth of collectivism" burning.

After getting elected in 2022, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul told the state's wealthiest residents to "jump on a bus and head down to Florida where you belong." Careful what you wish for.

Between 2019 and 2023, Florida netted over $20 billion in annual adjusted gross income from tax filers fleeing states like New York. The greater Miami area alone enjoyed over $10 billion in new revenue.

By contrast, New York state went from a nearly $9 billion surplus in 2022 to a more than $2 billion deficit by mid-2024. No wonder that earlier this year Hochul found herself hat in hand, begging "patriotic millionaires" to come back to her state.

Mamdani's and Hochul's bravado-laced hyperbole may galvanize their liberal supporters, but it utterly ignores reality. The wealthiest 1% of New Yorkers account for about half of the city's and state's personal income tax revenue, and officials have no way to fill in the hole as they chase these residents out of town.

New Yorkers are already saddled with some of the country's highest combined tax rates. Treating them with more taxes isn't a solution; it's throwing fuel on a revenue-shortage dumpster fire.

A report by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation this month estimates that New York's relentless campaigns to tax the rich have caused a loss of more than $12 billion in public revenue. Incapable of trimming their darling welfare programs, Democrats' only answer to the waning revenue problem is to raise taxes even more, creating a self-fulfilling cycle of mass exodus.

It's not only the ultra-wealthy who are getting the heck out of Dodge. Ordinary, hardworking families are packing their bags too. Between 2022 and 2023, Florida and Texas gained over 55,000 and 56,000 new residents, respectively, while California and New York notched the largest migration losses.

Young people — often assumed to be the heart and soul of the socialist movement — are also voting with their feet. "Wealthy millennials are flocking to Florida and Texas — and no one wants to live in New York or California," a 2024 Fortune headline proclaimed.

The left would love to have voters believe that their attempts to shake down high earners is some noble cause. It's not. It's merely another ploy to fund their socialist agenda — which is quickly running coffers dry. Their goal isn't to protect middle-class America; it is to amass power for themselves.

America was built on the principles of free-market competition, which makes our country the envy of the world. Making money isn't a crime; it's good for our communities. As much as Democrats might hate to admit it, they need successful individuals to fund their radical agenda, even as they demonize them.

If history is any indicator, it's only a matter of time until Mamdani's next viral video is one pleading with those he chased away to come back. Until then, expect that Americans will continue to seek out states that welcome their hard work rather than penalize it.

Ken Buck served in the United States House of Representatives from 2015-2024 representing Colorado's 4th congressional district. He now serves as a Fellow with the Independent Center. To find out more about Ken Buck and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Luca Bravo at Unsplash