New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan to tax the city’s ultra-rich residents to help patch a $5.4 billion fiscal hole is getting pushback from the ultra-rich, at least one of whom believes “tax the rich” is akin to a racial slur.
Steven Roth, the CEO of Vornado Realty Trust, used his company’s earnings call on Tuesday to complain about Mamdani’s rhetoric.
“I must say that I consider the phrase ‘tax the rich,’ quote, tax the rich, when spit out with anger and contempt by politicians both here and across the country to be just as hateful as some disgusting racial slurs ― and even the phrase ‘from the river to the sea,’” Roth told investors on the call.
The second part of Roth’s quote, “from the river to the sea,” refers to a slogan adopted by pro-Palestinian activists. The line ends, “Palestine will be free.”
In 2019, Forbes estimated Roth’s net worth exceeded $1.1 billion. In 2021, the Wall Street Journal described Roth as “a longtime friend” of Donald Trump, noting their “lucrative” business partnership.
Roth offered the quote Tuesday in defense of a different billionaire, Citadel CEO Ken Griffin (net worth $48+ billion) after Mamdani filmed a video on the street below Griffin’s $238 million penthouse to propose a new tax on high-value second homes in the city.
“When I ran for mayor, I said I was going to tax the rich,” Mamdani says in the video before he points out Griffin’s often-empty abode. “Today, we’re taxing the rich.”
Roth closed out the first part of his investor call with a plea for Mamdani to fix the budget shortfall “by managing rather than by taxing.”
“Ken, our partner and friend, is the best of the best,” said Roth, fawning over his business buddy and fellow Republican megadonor.
“What these [politicians] seem to be saying is that the rich are evil or the enemy or the targets or maybe even just suckers,” he added. “They are at the top of the Great American economic pyramid for a reason. They should be praised and thanked.”