A high-energy audience filled the Novo in downtown LA Monday night on Oct. 5 for the “Ballots over Billionaires” rally in support of Proposition 40, a 5% wealth tax on California billionaires, championed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna. Sanders delivered a powerful speech, highlighting wealth inequality, healthcare workers and the future of American democracy.
The measure proposes a 5% tax on the state’s approximately 250 billionaires, who together hold over $2.2 trillion in wealth. Supporters of the measure say this tax will help protect health care coverage for 3.5 million Californians and help keep over 150,000 health care providers open and accessible. Opponents have spent an impressive $200 million in an effort to stop the Proposition from passing.
“Prop. 40, the California billionaire tax act, is the most important item in the country because it deals with the most important issue facing our country,” Sanders said.
Sanders emphasized the measure is one part of a larger fight against the concentration of wealth and political power. During his speech, Sanders said the wealthiest Americans “believe they have a God-given right to rule” and urged supporters to take a stand against them.
“When working people stand together, we can take them on and we can beat them,” Sanders said.
He also cited the extreme economic disparities facing our country today, saying that the top 1% owns more wealth than the bottom 93% and that the CEOs of large corporations have earnings over 350% of what an average worker brings home.
Khanna noted that the tax would not noticeably impact the billionaires’ wealth, arguing that even after the 5% tax, they would still be extraordinarily wealthy. Instead, he argued that money could be better spent on health care clinics and coverage for millions of Californians.
Proposition 40 holds strong significance as it is the first-of-its-kind tax on billionaires put before voters, and serves as a national test case for other states and eventually even the federal level.
The measure has created friction within the democratic party as well, with opposition from California Gov. Gavin Newsom and several larger labor groups, including the California Teachers Association, California Professional Firefighters, and the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California; however, despite that, the California Democratic Party has officially endorsed the proposition and voters will ultimately make the final decision in November.
