1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:04,040 Speaker 1: New Yorkers are shocked to learn that Zaron Mamdanni is 2 00:00:04,040 --> 00:00:05,240 Speaker 1: going to raise their taxes. 3 00:00:06,680 --> 00:00:13,520 Speaker 2: They are shocked to learn that Zaron Mamdanni. 4 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 1: Doesn't know how to govern, that he is going to 5 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:24,239 Speaker 1: raise taxes, and those taxes are property taxes that will 6 00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:28,560 Speaker 1: go up by nearly ten percent. Tony Katz, Tony Katz today, 7 00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:32,240 Speaker 1: Good to be here, Good to be with you. This 8 00:00:32,479 --> 00:00:35,320 Speaker 1: was the reporting from Harris Faulkner and her team over 9 00:00:35,360 --> 00:00:36,480 Speaker 1: there at Fox News. 10 00:00:36,640 --> 00:00:36,960 Speaker 2: Thank you. 11 00:00:37,680 --> 00:00:41,000 Speaker 3: Jason Chafitz, former Republican Chairman of House Oversight and a 12 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:43,120 Speaker 3: Fox News contributor. First of all, I want to get 13 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:46,599 Speaker 3: your initial reaction to how mam Donni is governing at 14 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:51,920 Speaker 3: this point. Well, when you have only governed an Instagram 15 00:00:51,960 --> 00:00:54,280 Speaker 3: account and then suddenly you're going to deal with one 16 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:58,560 Speaker 3: hundred plus billion dollars, he's forgetting another option out there, 17 00:00:58,600 --> 00:01:02,760 Speaker 3: and that is to cut defenses, stop spending so much money, 18 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:06,119 Speaker 3: live within your means. His rich little parents have never 19 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:08,880 Speaker 3: taught him that lesson, and now he's trying to run 20 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:11,160 Speaker 3: a city and he doesn't understand numbers. 21 00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:16,720 Speaker 1: He is a believer that right now the city of 22 00:01:16,760 --> 00:01:22,479 Speaker 1: New York is going to have a shortfall, and how 23 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:28,200 Speaker 1: do they deal with this reality. You've had this happen 24 00:01:28,280 --> 00:01:33,320 Speaker 1: before where you live. You've had it happen before, where 25 00:01:34,600 --> 00:01:37,600 Speaker 1: local government tells you, well, we're not going to be 26 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:40,160 Speaker 1: able to afford this, that and the other, so we 27 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:40,720 Speaker 1: have to. 28 00:01:42,520 --> 00:01:48,320 Speaker 2: Raise taxes. I this morning gave a gave a. 29 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:53,760 Speaker 1: Speech to a local Republican club, a couple hundred people, 30 00:01:54,920 --> 00:01:57,680 Speaker 1: and I've got to asked a question at the end 31 00:01:57,760 --> 00:02:01,520 Speaker 1: about taxation, and I said, on the federal level, I 32 00:02:01,640 --> 00:02:05,040 Speaker 1: pose all income taxes. Income taxes are an obscenity before 33 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:08,239 Speaker 1: the lord. But on the local level, I do not 34 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:10,880 Speaker 1: mind that there are taxes, and that there are. 35 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:14,440 Speaker 2: Amenities that communities want and they have to be paid for. 36 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:18,600 Speaker 1: That's a far cry from when they say, well we 37 00:02:18,720 --> 00:02:20,720 Speaker 1: have to raise your property tax and if you don't 38 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:23,240 Speaker 1: want this, well we won't have fire services. Maybe you 39 00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:27,560 Speaker 1: should get fired mayor town council. However it works, Maybe 40 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 1: you need to get fired, you need to get canned, 41 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: and we'll bring in somebody who knows what it is 42 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:41,840 Speaker 1: that they're doing. It's pretty important that you bring in 43 00:02:41,919 --> 00:02:48,160 Speaker 1: people who know what they're doing. You can't just scream, well, 44 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:52,399 Speaker 1: pay the taxes. Or you won't have the fire put 45 00:02:52,440 --> 00:02:58,120 Speaker 1: out if it hits your house. Zorn Mamdani seems to 46 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:01,280 Speaker 1: be making this exact claim. 47 00:03:01,680 --> 00:03:05,360 Speaker 4: At the heart of this path is a property tax increase. 48 00:03:05,880 --> 00:03:08,080 Speaker 4: This would effectively be a tax on working in middle 49 00:03:08,120 --> 00:03:10,280 Speaker 4: class New Yorkers who have a median income of one 50 00:03:10,360 --> 00:03:13,480 Speaker 4: hundred and twenty two thousand dollars. The second path also 51 00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:16,760 Speaker 4: requires us to raid our reserves. It would mean withdrawing 52 00:03:16,840 --> 00:03:19,760 Speaker 4: nine hundred and eighty million dollars from our city's Rainy 53 00:03:19,840 --> 00:03:22,720 Speaker 4: Day Fund in fiscal year twenty twenty six and two 54 00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:25,679 Speaker 4: hundred and twenty nine million dollars from the Retiree Health 55 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 4: Benefit Trust in fiscal year twenty twenty seven. These are 56 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:32,600 Speaker 4: steps that have been taken before, but only in moments 57 00:03:32,639 --> 00:03:36,600 Speaker 4: of extraordinary external crisis. Mayor Bloomberg's response to the two 58 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:39,800 Speaker 4: thousand and eight financial collapse and Mayor Deblasio's response to 59 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:43,400 Speaker 4: the enormous revenue shortfall caused by the pandemic. We do 60 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:46,160 Speaker 4: not want to have to turn to such drastic measures 61 00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 4: to balance our budget. 62 00:03:48,680 --> 00:03:51,400 Speaker 1: But they are more than happy to turn to those 63 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 1: drastic measures. The argument from Mom Donnie is that while 64 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:02,800 Speaker 1: the city isn't going to put a wealth tax on. 65 00:04:03,120 --> 00:04:05,000 Speaker 1: I mean, the state isn't gonna put a wealth tax on. 66 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:07,160 Speaker 1: And since they won't put a wealth tax on, we're 67 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:10,640 Speaker 1: gonna have to do this because well, the wealthy should 68 00:04:10,640 --> 00:04:11,160 Speaker 1: have to pay. 69 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:14,520 Speaker 2: It's not a fair share. It's a nonsense number. 70 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:19,560 Speaker 1: Let's attack them and then, uh, we'll just keep having programs. 71 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:23,919 Speaker 1: Never mind putting Islamists in the worst progressives in positions 72 00:04:24,200 --> 00:04:28,760 Speaker 1: of power. Never once does Mom Donnie's team consider, Okay, 73 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:31,919 Speaker 1: well we can't spend Onne these things. No, no, no, no, no. 74 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:34,920 Speaker 1: They're going to spend and they don't care if they 75 00:04:34,960 --> 00:04:38,520 Speaker 1: bankrupt the city to do it. I have to admit 76 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:43,800 Speaker 1: that I don't care if the city gets bankrupted, doesn't 77 00:04:44,720 --> 00:04:50,680 Speaker 1: doesn't matter to me. I can't. I cannot bring myself 78 00:04:51,240 --> 00:04:55,720 Speaker 1: to care. Do they have budget issues? Sure, they have 79 00:04:55,720 --> 00:05:02,279 Speaker 1: budget issues. Into the billions, absolutely, into the billions. You 80 00:05:02,279 --> 00:05:06,320 Speaker 1: want an interesting number, I'll give you an interesting number. 81 00:05:07,520 --> 00:05:14,800 Speaker 1: This was a posted by who was this on the 82 00:05:14,880 --> 00:05:20,080 Speaker 1: on the twitters Geiger Capital. Very very interesting bit of 83 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:20,719 Speaker 1: numbers here. 84 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:21,440 Speaker 2: So this. 85 00:05:23,000 --> 00:05:28,120 Speaker 1: Is the breakdown of the budget ninety four billion for 86 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:31,400 Speaker 1: the agency's thirty three billion dollars for pensins and debt 87 00:05:31,480 --> 00:05:35,719 Speaker 1: services forty percent to the DOE, twenty six percent, Social services, 88 00:05:35,960 --> 00:05:38,960 Speaker 1: twelve percent uniformed agencies. So seven percent of the budget 89 00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:42,760 Speaker 1: is New York Police Department, three percent is Fire Department, 90 00:05:42,839 --> 00:05:45,360 Speaker 1: five percent of health and it breaks down from there. 91 00:05:47,080 --> 00:05:54,080 Speaker 1: The budget is one hundred and twenty seven billion dollars. Wow, 92 00:05:54,160 --> 00:05:56,920 Speaker 1: New York's budgets one hundred and twenty seven billion. No, no, no, no, no, no. 93 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:04,479 Speaker 1: New York City's budget, the budget for just the five boroughs, 94 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:10,120 Speaker 1: for Manhattan, for Queens, for the Bronx, for Brooklyn, and 95 00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:17,279 Speaker 1: for Staten Island one hundred and twenty seven billion dollars. 96 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:26,360 Speaker 1: What makes that number interesting is, as it is pointed out, 97 00:06:27,839 --> 00:06:34,120 Speaker 1: that's the budget for the City of New York. The 98 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:39,880 Speaker 1: budget for the entire state of Florida. The budget for 99 00:06:39,920 --> 00:06:43,560 Speaker 1: New York is one hundred and twenty seven billion. The 100 00:06:43,720 --> 00:06:47,200 Speaker 1: budget for the entire state of Florida is one hundred 101 00:06:47,240 --> 00:06:53,040 Speaker 1: and seventeen billion. Yeah, it's an eye opening number. It's 102 00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:59,840 Speaker 1: ten billion less with a B. In Florida, there are 103 00:06:59,880 --> 00:07:08,880 Speaker 1: twenty three million people, twenty three million Floridians. In New 104 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:19,640 Speaker 1: York there are eight million. So to take care of 105 00:07:19,760 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: eight million people, you need one hundred and twenty seven 106 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:29,720 Speaker 1: billion dollars. Hold a second, let me, I mean, do 107 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:32,240 Speaker 1: we do the math this way? Is this right? I 108 00:07:32,280 --> 00:07:34,320 Speaker 1: don't even if my calculator could go this high. Maybe 109 00:07:34,320 --> 00:07:36,440 Speaker 1: if I turn it sideways. Right, If I take one 110 00:07:36,480 --> 00:07:39,400 Speaker 1: hundred and twenty seven and then there's a lot of zeros, 111 00:07:40,240 --> 00:07:43,280 Speaker 1: there's under twenty seven billion. I divide that by eight million. 112 00:07:48,360 --> 00:07:50,800 Speaker 1: Do I have that rite? Fifteen eight hundred and seventy 113 00:07:50,800 --> 00:07:52,160 Speaker 1: five dollars per New Yorker? 114 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:55,280 Speaker 2: Is that it? 115 00:07:58,560 --> 00:08:03,720 Speaker 1: That's what it takes. But if I have one hundred 116 00:08:03,720 --> 00:08:09,600 Speaker 1: and seventeen billion, there you go, and I divide that 117 00:08:09,800 --> 00:08:20,040 Speaker 1: by twenty three million. That's five thousand, eighty six dollars. 118 00:08:21,080 --> 00:08:27,280 Speaker 1: It takes ten thousand more dollars per citizen to run 119 00:08:27,360 --> 00:08:31,080 Speaker 1: New York instead of Florida. Well Tony, Admittedly, in New 120 00:08:31,160 --> 00:08:33,880 Speaker 1: York you have snow removal. I saw what just happened 121 00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:36,840 Speaker 1: in New York. No you don't, well Tony. I mean 122 00:08:36,880 --> 00:08:39,720 Speaker 1: there is trash removal. I just saw what happened this 123 00:08:39,840 --> 00:08:42,280 Speaker 1: winter in New York. No you don't. 124 00:08:43,160 --> 00:08:44,560 Speaker 2: They don't have a trash removal. 125 00:08:45,679 --> 00:08:48,960 Speaker 1: In Florida. They deal with hurricanes, they get the lights 126 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:52,520 Speaker 1: back on. It got so cold that iguanas were falling 127 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:58,040 Speaker 1: from the sky. You think that in Florida they have 128 00:08:58,200 --> 00:08:59,480 Speaker 1: a falling ice. 129 00:08:59,320 --> 00:09:00,480 Speaker 2: Iguana jet. 130 00:09:01,880 --> 00:09:03,920 Speaker 1: Maybe they do, but I don't think it's that big. 131 00:09:04,679 --> 00:09:07,480 Speaker 1: Someone get with Ron DeSantis. Is there a budget for 132 00:09:07,559 --> 00:09:12,280 Speaker 1: the falling frozen ice iguanas? By the way, frozen ice 133 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:16,480 Speaker 1: iguana's great name for a band's better name for a tequila? 134 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:21,080 Speaker 1: What what am i? 135 00:09:21,480 --> 00:09:24,240 Speaker 2: Julian? Julian, we're making a tequila. 136 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:31,440 Speaker 1: Frozen ice iguana, frozen ice iguana tequila falling or is 137 00:09:31,440 --> 00:09:36,760 Speaker 1: it just falling iguana tequila? Falling iguana tequila or frozen 138 00:09:36,760 --> 00:09:39,080 Speaker 1: iguana tequila. Honestly, we're gonna have to take a poll. 139 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:41,400 Speaker 1: We need to get the boys in the lab. We're 140 00:09:41,440 --> 00:09:43,439 Speaker 1: gonna need a poll. We're gonna have to figure this out. 141 00:09:44,080 --> 00:09:47,319 Speaker 1: Oh I'll have this tequila up in thirty days time. 142 00:09:48,120 --> 00:09:53,679 Speaker 2: To quote Neil Brennan, why in the world. 143 00:09:56,120 --> 00:09:59,040 Speaker 1: Does New York need all that money? Why don't they 144 00:09:59,120 --> 00:09:59,840 Speaker 1: cut a program? 145 00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:03,160 Speaker 2: Progressives never cut a program. 146 00:10:03,440 --> 00:10:07,560 Speaker 1: Progressives never look at the situation and say, Okay, we 147 00:10:07,600 --> 00:10:10,920 Speaker 1: can't afford this. They look at you and say you 148 00:10:11,000 --> 00:10:16,120 Speaker 1: can afford more, and then they say give us our money, 149 00:10:17,160 --> 00:10:21,320 Speaker 1: and they use the force of government to get it. Remember, 150 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 1: government is force. That's what it is. Government is force 151 00:10:30,080 --> 00:10:33,600 Speaker 1: in the end, that's what it is. Even if you say, hey, 152 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:36,240 Speaker 1: I just want government to, you know, have a military 153 00:10:36,240 --> 00:10:39,880 Speaker 1: and enforce contracts. How do you enforce a contract without force. Remember, 154 00:10:39,920 --> 00:10:42,480 Speaker 1: I'm a liberty guy, not a freedom guy. And there 155 00:10:42,559 --> 00:10:45,120 Speaker 1: is a difference. It's not that I have oppositions to 156 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:48,360 Speaker 1: the very concepts of freedom. It's that I believe that 157 00:10:48,440 --> 00:10:52,199 Speaker 1: a society thrives best when there are a couple of guardrails, 158 00:10:52,600 --> 00:10:57,160 Speaker 1: When there are a couple of borders and we know 159 00:10:57,240 --> 00:11:00,800 Speaker 1: how to operate within them. People know how to operate 160 00:11:00,840 --> 00:11:03,240 Speaker 1: within the rules. That's when I think people are most free, 161 00:11:03,240 --> 00:11:08,480 Speaker 1: and it's easier to engage in exchange and enjoy. When 162 00:11:08,520 --> 00:11:12,320 Speaker 1: you have freedom and nobody knows the rules, it's harder. 163 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:16,920 Speaker 1: That's why I'm a liberty guide. This is not to 164 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:19,120 Speaker 1: say that I favor mass government. 165 00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:19,240 Speaker 4: No. 166 00:11:19,400 --> 00:11:20,920 Speaker 2: I favor Article one Section eight. 167 00:11:21,280 --> 00:11:28,320 Speaker 1: I favor the leanest, smallest government humanly possible. But I 168 00:11:28,360 --> 00:11:31,800 Speaker 1: do favor some government. I'm not an anti government guy. 169 00:11:32,440 --> 00:11:35,960 Speaker 1: I just want government with inside a scope, right, I 170 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:39,080 Speaker 1: want it within a framework, and I want that framework 171 00:11:39,080 --> 00:11:44,040 Speaker 1: to be outrageously, outrageously limited, which is why I think 172 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:47,199 Speaker 1: the Founding Fathers, I think the idea of the Constitution 173 00:11:47,840 --> 00:11:50,840 Speaker 1: is so remarkable, the how of America. 174 00:11:50,880 --> 00:11:51,640 Speaker 2: Here's how we do. 175 00:11:51,640 --> 00:11:54,600 Speaker 1: It, versus the Declaration of Independence, which is the why 176 00:11:54,640 --> 00:11:57,520 Speaker 1: of America, which is of course a beautiful document and 177 00:11:57,559 --> 00:12:01,040 Speaker 1: nothing like it in the world. This explanation that we 178 00:12:01,120 --> 00:12:04,800 Speaker 1: indeed are free, which the Founding Fathers really believed. And 179 00:12:04,840 --> 00:12:06,560 Speaker 1: here's a really you know, you take a look at 180 00:12:06,559 --> 00:12:09,640 Speaker 1: Adams and Jefferson and Jefferson. It was tasked with writing 181 00:12:09,640 --> 00:12:12,360 Speaker 1: the Constitution. And part of that is because John Adams, 182 00:12:12,360 --> 00:12:14,880 Speaker 1: being from Massachusetts, knew that he needed to get other 183 00:12:14,920 --> 00:12:18,280 Speaker 1: states to agree, and Thomas Jefferson being from Virginia and 184 00:12:18,320 --> 00:12:20,520 Speaker 1: being the largest state and certainly the most prosperous state, 185 00:12:20,880 --> 00:12:22,680 Speaker 1: if he wrote it, it would be. 186 00:12:22,559 --> 00:12:24,160 Speaker 2: More likely to get passed. 187 00:12:25,080 --> 00:12:28,320 Speaker 1: And Adams believed that Jefferson had better flourish of the 188 00:12:28,360 --> 00:12:33,520 Speaker 1: pen than Adams did. He wrote in Jefferson wrote in 189 00:12:33,600 --> 00:12:37,839 Speaker 1: more of a prose, and Adams was much more practical, 190 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:43,480 Speaker 1: being and certainly wasn't as jovial or anything like that. Right, 191 00:12:43,640 --> 00:12:46,960 Speaker 1: But we come to the Constitution and how Madison is 192 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:50,080 Speaker 1: considered the father of the Constitution but didn't necessarily engage 193 00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:50,640 Speaker 1: in the full. 194 00:12:50,480 --> 00:12:51,520 Speaker 2: Writing of the Constitution. 195 00:12:53,760 --> 00:12:56,920 Speaker 1: I have yet to be convinced that somehow there's something better. 196 00:12:57,120 --> 00:12:58,640 Speaker 1: The left will tell you, well, look at the South 197 00:12:58,679 --> 00:13:01,959 Speaker 1: African Constitution I have it sucks. And if you buy 198 00:13:01,960 --> 00:13:04,920 Speaker 1: into the South African Constitution, holy hell, are you not 199 00:13:05,000 --> 00:13:10,240 Speaker 1: allowed anywhere near power in my country? Oh dear God. 200 00:13:11,480 --> 00:13:14,520 Speaker 1: But I believe in this small government. And that is 201 00:13:14,520 --> 00:13:16,240 Speaker 1: a government that says we can't afford to do all 202 00:13:16,280 --> 00:13:20,520 Speaker 1: these things. It makes the hard decisions. It says no, Mom, 203 00:13:20,559 --> 00:13:23,760 Speaker 1: Donnie doesn't say no, except to you when you say 204 00:13:23,760 --> 00:13:26,200 Speaker 1: I want to keep my money, Mom, Donnie says no. 205 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:34,400 Speaker 1: Why are people staying? You are watching the last pages 206 00:13:34,679 --> 00:13:41,400 Speaker 1: of Atlas Shrugged come to life, and it's only a 207 00:13:41,400 --> 00:13:45,680 Speaker 1: matter of time before the lights go out. I don't 208 00:13:45,679 --> 00:13:48,720 Speaker 1: know if Florida's Galt's gulch me I happen to like 209 00:13:49,040 --> 00:13:54,199 Speaker 1: the Midwest, but it's certainly better than whatever the hellscape 210 00:13:54,240 --> 00:13:57,439 Speaker 1: is that New York is offering. I'm Tony Katz, and 211 00:13:57,520 --> 00:13:59,160 Speaker 1: this it's Tony Katz Today,