Mamdani and the leftist mayors
Here’s the plan, according to this NY Post article:
The motley crew of capitalist-crushing Democratic mayors includes Chicago’s Brandon Johnson, Boston’s Michelle Wu, Oakland’s Barbara Lee, Seattle’s Katie Wilson and Los Angeles’ Karen Bass.
“Right now, we are the process of forming sort of a mayor’s coalition, much like district and state’s attorneys have formed to fight back against federal overreach,” Johnson said of the socialist sextet.
Mamdani “expressed a desire and commitment to work with the city of Chicago, Boston. We have Seattle on board. We have Oakland, Mayor Lee, Mayor Bass in Los Angeles as well,” added Johnson in a video posted Monday on X. …
“Nothing says ‘terrible idea’ like six cities famous for sky-high taxes and persistent crime deciding the solution is to compare notes,” said Bruce Blakeman, New York’s Republican gubernatorial nominee.
Mamdani’s reps said he’s in regular contact with many other mayors and governors across the country but insisted he’s yet to decide whether to join new coalition.
That would be quite the force multiplier.
One of Mamdani’s recent proposals is this humdinger, just one of many he’s considering:
The socialist mayor wants to drastically slash the estate tax exemption threshold from the $7 million limit to just $750,000, a drop of more than 90%, according to a memo City Hall recently circulated to Albany lawmakers. …
In addition to dropping the estate tax exemption — to what would be the lowest in the US — Mamdani is also pitching increasing the top rate to a whopping 50%, from the current 16%, in what he said would raise $4 billion combined, the outlet reported.
“This is a prime example of how the ‘tax the rich’ movement is actually all about taxing the middle class and those struggling to put food on their tables for their families,” Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (R-Staten Island) told The Post of the proposal.
Staten Island is the only Republican borough of New York, the only one that voted for Trump (about 65% in 2024) and for Mamdani’s opponents (23% for Mamdani). But I would imagine that quite a few people all over New York City who did vote for Mamdani would not be pleased if such changes were ever enacted. Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars does not go very far in New York City.
Of course, many of Mamdani’s supporters have no estates to pass on and probably no hope of having any. Plus, many are young and a long way away from even thinking about leaving to descendants whatever money they do have or ever will have. They might be interested in inheriting their parents’ estates intact, though, if their parents have much of anything and live in New York state. But I think most of Mamdani’s young voters would be only too happy to confiscate the money of others through an estate tax of this magnitude. “From each according to his means, to each according to his needs.”

I don’t think the New York City council has the authority to enact an estate tax. That lies with the state legislature. They do have a special dispensation which allows an income tax and a commuter tax not found in the rest of the state.
I’d love to see how they come up with that $4 billion revenue estimate. Perot’s “giant sucking sound” will be all the people leaving NYC if that is enacted, and the collapse of property values, and of tax revenues along with them. Mamdani has the economic sophistication of a 12-year-old.
Harold Skimpole.
Related:
“NYC Council Dems float bizarre plan to crack down on the supermarket self-checkout line”—
https://nypost.com/2026/03/14/us-news/nyc-council-dems-bizarre-plan-to-crack-down-on-shoplifting/
Less like manipulation, fecklessness or lack of sophistication.
More like Virtuous Destruction(TM)…
…keeping in mind that Capitalism is right up there with the greatest of evils and must be brought to its knees…