Amazon Executive Chair Jeff Bezos on Wednesday accused politicians of villainizing the ultra-wealthy and using tax policy as a political wedge issue to distract from bigger challenges facing the country.
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“You could double the taxes I pay, and it’s not going to help that teacher in Queens,” Bezos said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
“I think what’s going on is that it’s kind of a tale of two economies — so you have a bunch of people in this country who are doing really well, but you also have a bunch of people in this country who are struggling,” he said.
“So what’s happening here is, politicians are using the kind of age old technique … you know, picking a villain and pointing fingers, but the problem is that doesn’t solve anything,” Bezos said.
“Some people talk about making the tax system more progressive,” he said. “How about we start by having the nurse in Queens not pay taxes?” It was unclear precisely which taxes Bezos was referring to.
But an estimated 40% of U.S. households did not owe any individual income taxes for the 2024 tax year, according to the Tax Policy Center. This is in line with previous years and other public data.
The bottom 50% of U.S. taxpayers had an average income of only $53,801 per year in 2023, according to recent Tax Foundation data.
Bezos, meanwhile, is the fourth richest person in the world, with a net worth of more than $270 billion.
Tax rates, he told CNBC, are “certainly a perfectly valid policy debate.”
Mamdani’s New York
During the CNBC interview, Bezos, who moved to Miami and whose companies are headquartered in Washington state, repeatedly invoked the finances of New York City.
Zohran Mamdani, the city’s mayor, has proven to be a popular foe of billionaires and millionaires since taking office in January.
Mamdani, a self-identified democratic socialist, has also proposed higher taxes on the wealthy.
Billionaires and high-end real estate agents warned that Mamdani’s victory last year and his policies would drive businesses and the wealthy out of New York City.
But early evidence appears to undermine that prediction.
A month before Mamdani was elected, JPMorgan Chase opened its new global headquarters at 270 Park Ave., a sign that one of the largest employers in New York isn’t planning to leave any time soon.
Manhattan’s luxury apartment market also surged in the weeks after Mamdani was elected, with signed contracts for units priced at $4 million or more jumping 25% in November.
In the months since, the luxury apartment market has continued tracking at a similar pace, with contracts in May up 10% from a year ago.
Sales at an even higher end of the market, units priced over $10 million, surged 80% in May from the year prior.
In February, American Express announced, alongside Mamdani, that it would build a brand new global headquarters in downtown Manhattan which will host more than 10,000 employees.
‘Taxing the rich’
But on Tax Day, Mamdani posted a now-viral video on social media in which he stood outside 220 Central Park South, a residential building along what is known as Billionaires Row to declare, “We’re taxing the rich.”
In the video, Mamdani announced a proposed “pied-à-terre” tax, which would apply to residential property owners who don’t live in the city full time.
Mamdani’s video showcased multiple high-end Manhattan buildings, but zeroed in on billionaire Ken Griffin, who bought a penthouse in the building for $238 million in 2019.
The purchase ranks as the most expensive U.S. private home sale ever. Griffin has a net worth of nearly $50 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Griffin fired back at Mamdani, threatening to alter plans for his company’s new office tower in Manhattan.
Griffin also accused Mamdani personally of putting him in “harm’s way” by showing the building on video. He also referenced the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in midtown Manhattan.
But Griffin’s purchase of the home and its address have been widely reported in the media since 2019, long before Mamdani was ever a candidate for mayor.
Earlier this month, Griffin conceded in a separate CNBC interview that he “probably” would still move forward with his new office tower.
Broad support for taxing billionaires
Mamdani’s general approach to taxation is not unpopular.
An April poll conducted by Fox News found that, “What bothers people most about federal income taxes is the wealthy are not paying enough.”
In March, the state of Washington approved a millionaires tax. Other states have zeroed in on additional taxes for millionaires and billionaires, too.
Massachusetts, Maryland and Maine have all passed dedicated high-income taxes in recent years. In January, the governor of Rhode Island endorsed the idea of a millionaires tax.
Lawmakers in Connecticut, Illinois, Colorado and California have also proposed similar ideas, according to Bloomberg.
On a federal level, tax hikes are unlikely as long as Republicans control the House, Senate and White House.
