In California, there has been a push for a billionaire tax for quite some time, and they finally pushed through the petition signature threshold to get this proposition on the November ballot. The supposed "one-time five percent tax" on billionaires' net worth would pay for healthcare and education. Where have we heard this one before? Another promise by Democrats through a tax increase for promises that won't come to fruition at the end.
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan (D), who is running for governor and is being backed by Silicon Valley donors such as Sergey Brin, is opposed to this wealth tax and lays out why:
The sad truth of this is, and this may be the message people need to hear. I don't think it will be the billionaires and the wealthiest who pay this tax. You're right that it isn't just billionaires who are leaving because people don't believe it's a one-time tax on billionaires. They assume that the threshold will be lowered by the legislature over time, and it will become a recurring wealth tax.
What that means is, as wealthier individuals, people who own companies, leave the state, it will be the middle class who is left holding the bag, and asked to pay more to cover the existing services and infrastructure maintenance the state needs. And that's why we've got to look at better ways of doing this.
California Democrat breaks ranks with his own party and exposes the “sad truth” about the proposed “wealth tax” on billionaires.
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) March 17, 2026
“This may be the message people need to hear…”
“I don’t think it will be the billionaires and the wealthiest who pay this tax.”
“What that means is… pic.twitter.com/ECPslBxI6W
Mahan is correct, the middle class will end up with the brunt of it, and for most middle-class residents in the state, they are tied down in a sense that they have built their business here, their clientele is here, and most importantly, their families are here. So it's not easy for them to up and leave. They will be trapped if this proposition passes.
This is constantly the Democrats' playbook. Find an issue that voters are upset or anxious about, such as healthcare and education, rile them up, and say we will fund better programs by "taxing billionaires." Sounds too good to be true? Well, because it is.
One of the biggest proponents of this wealth tax is billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, who, if he wanted to, could pay the wealth tax today.
Tom Steyer could do something epic: Pay the wealth tax today! He could prove he's ready to fork over $120M to the state by actually doing it.
— Matt Fleming (@FlemingWords) March 9, 2026
My latest in @SoCalOpinion : https://t.co/HEnzscgjDC
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This is similar to a higher corporate tax that Democrats have pushed for as well. If taxes are raised on corporations such as Walmart and Costco, they will pass those costs on to consumers. Working-class people shop at those places because the prices are hard to beat. But, if they need to pay higher taxes, those prices won't be hard to beat because they could end up on a level playing field, as any other shop.
Surprisingly (or unsurprisingly, depending on how you look at it), Gov. Gavin Newsom is opposed to this proposition, citing concern that it will damage the economy. But more so, I believe he is siding against this proposition to make it seem like he's a moderate and doesn't agree with everything California Democrats propose. We all know he is not a moderate and has signed into law nearly all the radical legislation passed by the Democrat supermajority in the legislature. After all, under Newsom's tenure as governor, California has lost Elon Musk, Larry Ellison, Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Mark Zuckerberg, among others. Newsom's support for policies that did not help the middle, working, or billionaire class has driven people out of the state and into states run by Republicans like Florida, Texas, and Tennessee.
With Zuck’s move to Florida, California’s total taxable wealth from billionaires has plummeted to well under $1T from over $2T just a few weeks ago.
— Chamath Palihapitiya (@chamath) February 10, 2026
The loss of this tax revenue was totally avoidable but is now forever. All because Gavin Newsom stood motionless as this stupidly… https://t.co/lJpzhTkMH6
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