Posted originally on Jul 1, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

New York City’s far-left mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani is the human embodiment of the WOKE Socialist agenda. His “progressive” views are based on policies that have failed countless times. Mamdani’s most recent proposal has sparked controversy as he believes that predominantly white neighborhoods should pay higher taxes.

Socialists feed on increased taxation to support the welfare state, which comprises their voter base. They need people who are utterly dependent on big government to gain and maintain control. Equality to a Socialist means that everyone is equal in poverty. Not only does he want to raise property taxes, but he stated that “wealthier and predominantly white neighborhoods” in New York City should disproportionately shoulder the majority of the tax burden.

That’s right—he wants to raise taxes on people based on skin color. Naturally, he would have been banished from politics and forced to step down if he spewed this rhetoric at any other demographic. “That is just a description of what we see right now. It’s not driven by race. It’s more of an assessment of what neighborhoods are being under-taxed versus over-taxed,” the mayoral candidate confessed.

Unfortunately, our models indicate that NYC will decline sharply in 2026. I warned in 2021 that the city was heading into a crash mode. It is fascinating how the 309.6-year cycle, marked by the time when NYC was on the brink of bankruptcy in 1975, aligns precisely with the year NYC was founded in 1665. It is striking how closely New York has followed the ECM model, which does not bode well for what is to come.

His proposed policy, “Stop the Squeeze on NYC Homeowners,” is based on the belief that less affluent neighborhoods are overtaxed. The plan would redistribute the tax burden from outer boroughs like Brownsville and Jamaica to more affluent neighborhoods where the demographic is predominantly white. In his words, he wants to target “predominantly white” neighborhoods specifically. The additional tax revenue will first fund the coffers of big government, which will multiply in size, and then seek to provide social programs to the “undertaxed,” such as universal childcare, free public transportation, rent freezes, and city-run grocery stores. Astonishing that a candidate could propose price controls and receive support.

Taxing white neighborhoods is one of many methods Mamdani plans to use to squeeze out every last penny from NYC residents. He said he approved of raising corporate taxes, income taxes, property taxes, and sales taxes, among others. The rich may be the first target, but his voter base does not realize that these taxes will eventually be passed on to absolutely everyone. The city could never profit enough in taxes to fund these social programs, and instead of shrinking government or admitting to failed policies, they will continue to raise the cost of living to fund those who completely rely on big government.

There is no quantifiable plan to fund these programs that sound nice on the campaign trail. It is not economically feasible. NYC residents already pay some of the highest taxes in the nation. Those in affluent neighborhoods pay far more into state and local taxes through income, property, sales—the list goes on, as there is nothing that the city will not slap a tax on and continue to raise year after year.

Cities begin to fall into ruin when high-net-worth individuals flee, and the government no longer has access to pockets to dip into. No one would have imagined something of this nature could happen in New York City, but realtors have begun reporting a surge in new home listings as higher-net-worth individuals want to get out before it’s too late. This is merely one of countless disastrous policies Mamdani is proposing.

The only people who succeed in such a system are the ruling elite who enjoy power and wealth created by corruption. The more the government tries to control the economy, the more freedom it must take away to enforce its policies. This is why every socialist system ultimately descends into authoritarianism. History proves this time and time again, yet people continue to believe that “this time will be different.”