>>> BILLION-AIRSIARES HAVE BEEN INCREASINGLY VOCAL.
INCREASINGLY VOCAL. A LONG TIME ADVISOR MICHAEL
BLOOMBERG CONFIRMING TO NBC NEWS
THE FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR IS
POSITIONING HIMSELF TO ENTER THE
DEMOCRATIC PARTY PRIMARY AS
FIRST REPORTED BY "THE NEW YORK
TIMES."
TIMES." BLOOMBERG IS EXPECTED TO FILE
PAPERWORK THIS WEEK FOR THE
PRIMARY IN ALABAMA WHICH IS THE
PRIMARY DEADLINE.
PRIMARY DEADLINE. ALSO WITH ME JOHN HARWOOD, A
HOST OF THE CNBC DIGITAL VIDEO
SERIES SPEAKEASY WITH JOHN
HARWOOD.
HARWOOD. WHEN WE CONCEIVED THE SEGMENT WE
WERE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE
BILLIONAIRE VERSUS AND SANDERS
AND NOW WE HAVE JUST ONE, YOU
KNOW, COMING FORWARD BASICALLY
TO RUN ON THE AGENDA WHICH IS
YOU GUYS ARE NUTS, WE WANT TO
KEEP OUR MONEY AND SOME OTHER
STUFF.
STUFF. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT
BLOOMBERG’S ENTRANCE?
BLOOMBERG’S ENTRANCE? >> IT IS HARD TO SEPARATE THE
EMERGENCE OF THIS NEWS FROM THE
RECENT ANGST AMONG PEOPLE, LEON
COOPERMAN, AND JAMIE DIMEN AND
BILL GATES THINKING THAT THE
HOARDS ARE COMING FOR THEIR
MONEY.
MONEY. THE INTERESTING THING TO ME IS
THERE ARE SERIOUS TAX HIKES ON
THE TABLE RIGHT NOW FROM BERNIE
SANDERS AND ELIZABETH WARREN.
BUT THESE BILLIONAIRES, MANY OF
THEM FELT THE SAME WAY WHEN
BARACK OBAMA WAS PROPOSING
TRIVIAL TAX HIKES DURING HIS
PRESIDENCY.
PRESIDENCY. WE ALL REMEMBER STEVE
SCHWARTZMAN SAYING IT WAS LIKE
THE NAZI INVASION, AND YOU HAD
ALL THESE COMPLAINTS WE WERE
BEING VILIFIED FOR BEING
SUCCESSFUL.
SUCCESSFUL. SOME OF THIS IS PSYCHOLOGICAL
THING I DON’T REALLY KNOW HOW TO
ACCOUNT FOR BECAUSE THE POLICY
ITSELF DOESN’T SEEM TO
NECESSARILY BE RELATED TO IT.
BUT THERE IS POLICY ON THE TABLE
NOW.
NOW. THERE’S CONCERN THAT JOE BIDEN
IS NOT AS STRONG AS SOME PEOPLE
LIKE MIKE BLOOMBERG HAD THOUGHT.
AS FOR WARREN AND SANDERS, HIS
COMPLAINT IS THAT THEY’RE NOT
ELECTABLE, BUT ONE OF THE
REASONS THEY’RE NOT SEEN AS
ELECTABLE IS THAT PEOPLE WITH
MONEY THINK THEY’RE GOING TO --
>> I THOUGHT THIS TWEET WAS
PRETTY FUNNY.
PRETTY FUNNY. THE FACT EACH RANDOM
BILLIONAIRE’S THOUGHTS ON
ELIZABETH WARREN IS A NEWS STORY
IS ITSELF -- AND I THINK SHOULD
BLOOMBERG GET INTO THE RACE IT
IS AN INTERESTING TEST.
WHAT CAN MONEY BUY?
TOM STOOIIERS SPENT $43 MILLION
FAR, BUT HE’S CERTAINLY NOT A
FRONT-RUNNER.
FRONT-RUNNER. >> HOWARD SCHULTZ.
>> EXACTLY, WHAT CAN YOU BUY?
>> TOM STEYER IS THE ONLY
BILLIONAIRE TO HIS CREDIT WHO
HAS WEALTH TAX CREDIT, WARREN
HAS A HIGHER ONE, AND SANDERS
HAS THE HIGHEST ONE WHICH IS 8%
OVER $10 BILLION.
WHAT I THINK IS MOST DRGINTEREST
IS ALL THESE BILLIONAIRES SEEM
TO THINK THEY HAVE THE SOLUTION
AND THEY CAN SOLVE THE WORLD’S
PROBLEMS BETTER THAN THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT CAN WITH ITS MILLIONS
OF WORKERS MANY OF WHOM ARE
EXPERTS.
EXPERTS. WE HAD ANOTHER BILLIONAIRE
BUSINESSMAN WHO SEEMED TO THINK
HE KNEW BETTER THAN THE ENTIRE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND AT LEAST
THE DIFFERENCE HERE AT LEAST IN
THIS SENSE IS NOT VERY MUCH.
IN THIS ONE SENSE BILL GATES IS
BASICALLY DONALD TRUMP WITH
BETTER TABLE MANNERS.
>> HERE’S WHAT I THINK IS ALSO
DIFFERENT THIS TIME AROUND
SPEAKING BOTH TO TRUMP AND WHAT
JOHN SAID ABOUT PREVIOUS FITS OF
RAGE FROM WALL STREET ABOUT
BEING TAXED.
BEING TAXED. THE WEALTH TAX IS A REAL THING,
IT’S A NEW THING, IT WOULD
GENUINELY CHANGE THE BALANCE
SHEETS OF BILLIONIAN AIRS IN THE
WAY OTHER FORMS OF TAXATION
WOULDN’T.
WOULDN’T. MOST OF THEIR MONEY IS IN
WEALTH.
WEALTH. IT’S NOT IN INCOME.
IT WOULD BE A NEW ADDITION.
THIS IS WHAT BLOOMBERG SAID TO
MY COLLEAGUE, STEPHANIE RUHLE.
TAKE A LISTEN.
>> I THINK A LOT OF PANDERING ON
SOME OF THE MORE LIBERAL THINGS,
IT’S REALLY NOT PRACTICAL.
THE ECONOMICS WOULDN’T WORK, THE
PUBLIC WOULDN’T WANT IT, BUT IN
ORDER TO GET THROUGH A PRIMARY,
A DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY OR
REPUBLICAN PRIMARY, CANDIDATES
TAKE POSITIONS TAT ARE MORE
EXTREME THAN WHAT THE PUBLIC
WANTS.
WANTS. THE PUBLIC DOES NOT WANT
REVOLUTIONARY CHANGE.
REVOLUTIONARY CHANGE. IT WANTS EVOLUTIONARY CHANGE.
>> NOW, THAT’S A DEFENSIBLE
ARGUMENT ON THE MERITS BUT ONE
THING I FIND SO INTERESTING IS
HOW WELL THE WEALTH TAX
SPECIFICALLY POLLS.
SPECIFICALLY POLLS. THERE’S LOTS OF THINGS IN THE
DEMOCRAT AGENDA THAT POLL
POORLY, BUT THAT ONE REALLY DOES
POLL WELL.
POLL WELL. >> IT DOES POLL WELL AND IN
GENERAL RAISING TAXES ON WEALTHY
PEOPLE, ON PEOPLE WITH INCOMES
OVER $250,000 OR $400,000 POLLS
VERY WELL.
VERY WELL. NOW, THE FACT IT POLLS WELL
DOESN’T PEEN THE WEALTH TAX
ITSELF PROPOSED BY SANDERS AND
WARREN IS A GOOD IDEA.
YOU’VE GOT SOMEONE LIKE LARRY
SANDERS, A FORMER TREASURY
SECRETARY IS MAKING THE ARGUMENT
IT WOULDN’T RAISE THE MONEY THAT
SHE’S TALKING ABOUT, IT MIGHT
NOT BE SUCCESSFUL.
SO THERE ARE MERITORIOUS
ARGUMENTS ABOUT THE WEALTH TAX
ITSELF.
ITSELF. BUT IT IS ODD TO HEAR THEM
COMING FROM THE AFFECTED CLASS.
>> I DON’T KNOW I’D BUY THOSE
ARGUMENTS, RIGHT?
ARGUMENTS, RIGHT? I USED TO WORK ON WALL STREET
AND THE WEALTHIEST TRADERS LIVED
IN MANHATTAN AND THEY
VOLUNTARILY PAID HIGHER TAXES
BECAUSE THEY WANTED THE
GLAMOROUSNESS OF LIVING IN
MANHATTAN.
MANHATTAN. AND AT THE END OF THE DAY THIS
PAYS REALLY WELL.
BILLION-AIRS PAYS 2% FEES TO
HEDGE FUNDS SO THEY CAN MAKE
MORE MONEY JUST TO GET IN THE
DOOR.
DOOR. SO WHY SHOULDN’T THEY PAY A 2%
WEALTH TAX JUST TO GET INTO
SOCIETY.
SOCIETY. SO I THINK THE ARGUMENT THEY’RE
MAKING.
MAKING. >> IT IS ITS ENWEALTH TAX.