New York City is likely to elect either Zohran Mamdani, a communist, or Andrew Cuomo, a failed governor, as mayor. Either way, it could destroy the city. So, how will this affect the rest of America? Former Trump economic advisor Stephen Moore joins Glenn to explain why he believes another mass migration out of New York is coming…
Transcript
Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors
GLENN: Stephen Moore is with us now. Stephen, how much time do you have with me today?
STEPHEN: As much as you want, Glenn. Great to hear your voice. Great to be with you.
I disagree with you on something you just said.
GLENN: Okay. All right. Let's start there.
STEPHEN: You know, I do think -- look, New York has lost two and a half million people on net over the last ten years, to other states. Almost two and a half million people.
Which is, what? Four congressional seats right there.
So there's a mass. The big story in America, Glenn. Right now. And people should go on our website. Vote With Your Feet. And you can see, just click on any two states. You can click on New York. And you can click on Texas. And it will show you the -- where the moving vans are going to and from. And also, how much money they're taking with them because we know the income of these people as well.
So New York has lost two and a half million people. And, by the way, half of those people came from New York City. So if -- did they elect a socialist and they raised the taxes, again, New York City already has the highest taxes in the United States in North America. So if they raise them again, on, quote, the rich, they won't be there any longer. And I'll make another prediction to you, Glenn.
Are you in Texas? Where are you now?
(laughter)
GLENN: It's like a shell game.
I never really know. I just moved last week. I left my business in Texas.
Because I am never going to sever myself from Texas. I left my business in Texas. I promised my wife about 400 years ago, that some take we would live by the beach. So we moved to Florida. Business in Texas.
STEPHEN: You moved from no income tax state. To another no income tax state.
GLENN: Yeah. Are you crazy? I'm not doing anything else?
I would have dug a canal from the Atlantic, all the way to Dallas, if they forced me to move to a tax state. Anyway...
STEPHEN: So anyway, I'm in Dallas today.
GLENN: I know.
STEPHEN: Where are you in Florida?
GLENN: I'm not saying that on the air. But I will tell you that we're going to have dinner, Stephen. When you get back into dinner, Stephen, we'll have dinner.
STEPHEN: So, anyway, now I lost my train of concentration.
GLENN: So we were talking about the people that are moving and the tax base.
STEPHEN: Yeah. So basically, that's why I believe -- look, 1 million is probably a long shot.
But I think you're going to see a lot of wealth move out of New York. Now, here's the thing. You probably are aware of this. But about two months ago, the -- Texas has their own stock exchange. So we had the New York Stock Exchange for 150 years. Now you've got the Texas Stock Exchange, which I believe is in Dallas.
GLENN: I know.
STEPHEN: I believe, if they raise these taxes again, you pay 17 percent income tax in New York City.
GLENN: Jeez.
STEPHEN: Who is going to do that?
GLENN: My gosh.
STEPHEN: After 40 percent federal tax. So people will move. And I'll give you one -- one example.
Do you know Ken Griffin? He's the billionaire who created Citadel.
GLENN: Yeah.
STEPHEN: He's a big guy. Free market guy. And he was the single, biggest charitable giving in the city of Chicago. He gave to the Art Institute. He gave to the homeless shelters. He gave to the food kitchens and the museums and so on.
I mean, he was -- he was by far the biggest donor to all of the charities.
Well, finally, they kept raising, raising taxes in Chicago. And as you probably know, he moved out of Chicago. And he moved to Palm Beach.
Florida. And so then the interesting part of this story is, it put a 50 million-dollar hold in the Illinois budget.
GLENN: Oh, my gosh.
STEPHEN: And all the -- there's a funny story in the Chicago business. That all of a sudden, charities like, why isn't he donating to us anymore?
Why isn't he living there anymore?
So my point is, you chase the evil rich out of your city and your state. You pay a high price for that. By the way, he took several thousand, you know, jobs with him. So when you -- when you hear stoke the rich -- you know, the rich are -- as the old saying goes, "The rich aren't rich because they're stupid."
GLENN: Right.
So let me ask you this, Stephen. Because it used to be that New York was -- I mean, was the capital of the whole world.
STEPHEN: Yeah. Yeah. Financial capital.
GLENN: And because of the stock exchange. How real is the loss of the New York Stock Exchange. As something like the Texas stock exchange?
Is that something that really could actually happen?
STEPHEN: Yeah. It could happen. And look, the truth is that the New York Stock Exchange, even today, isn't anything like it was '60s, '70s, '80s, just like I mentioned I'm from Chicago. Remember the movie Trading Places, they're trading. It doesn't really exist anymore. Because that's all done by computers and electronically. So the trading floors aren't the same as they were. So Wall Street is just a shadow of what it once was. But what I'm saying is, today in America, in Dallas, Texas, there are more financial services jobs than there are in New York City.
GLENN: Oh, my gosh.
STEPHEN: That's amazing!
GLENN: Oh, my gosh.
So --
STEPHEN: It's happening.
GLENN: So how long -- how much more, Stephen, how much more can New York take before it's -- it's no longer the financial capital?
How much more -- how many people have to move?
What has to happen, for it to really understand, wow. We made a huge mistake here?
STEPHEN: You would think they would have gotten that message already.
GLENN: No.
STEPHEN: And one of the things that you first did your show, many, many years ago. You were in New York.
So you're familiar with New York. And when was that? In the '90s when were you --
GLENN: In the 2000 -- 2000s. Mid-2000, you know, 2005. 2010.
STEPHEN: Yeah. Because I remember when Rudy -- this is an important point because I know you have a lot of listeners all over the country in New York and New Jersey. In the New York area.
So when Rudy Giuliani was elected mayor, New York was a mess. And you could see every week, because I was working at the Wall Street Journal at the time. Every week, you could see the improvement in the city. He got rid of the crime. He got rid of the graffiti. He got rid of the drug dealers. He got rid of -- he lowered the taxes. It wasn't complicated, Glenn. I mean, this wasn't rocket surgery.
GLENN: I know.
STEPHEN: This was obvious stuff.
And New York was New York again. And it was booming. And what's sad about this election that's happening today, is if Mamdani wins, they will reverse every single thing that Rudy did. And they will be back in the ditch. How stupid would people be to fall for that!
And part of the problem, Glenn, quite frankly, something you and I have talked about for years. Is our education system. You have 24-year-olds are voting, they think socialism works. Where? Show me. Where?
GLENN: Yeah. So what happens if he is elected? I mean, how -- what does it mean to people who have never gone to New York City?
Is -- is the loss of New York City to a Mamdani, is that going to affect everybody else's life?
STEPHEN: That's a good question. you're there in Florida.
Florida has gained. I really want people to go to this website.
Because it's amazing.
So Florida, under a great, great, great governor, Ron DeSantis. And you had a great governor, Rick Scott, before him. Florida, are you ready? Are you sitting down, Glenn? Florida has imported over the ten-year period, one trillion dollars of income from people coming in from other states. $1 trillion. It's the biggest mass migration ever in the history of this country.
GLENN: Unbelievable.
STEPHEN: And, by the way, people are not just living in New York. What you know other states they're leaving?
California.
GLENN: I think New York is moving to Florida, and California is moving to Texas.
STEPHEN: Moving to Texas, exactly.
And so you're just bleeding these blue states. That's why I don't get it.
So the thing that worries me. I was thinking about this, a lot over the past couple of days. If these states vote the wrong way, the only way that New York even survives, fiscally is with another massive federal bailout.
GLENN: Bailout. I know.
STEPHEN: How are you they going to pay their bills?
GLENN: They're not. They're not. And, you know, that's -- this is what I've said for a long time.
You know, the Constitution is not a suicide PAC. And California and New York and Chicago are going to eventually need giant bailouts.
And why should I pay for that know. I didn't live in those places. I didn't live there for a reason.
STEPHEN: Right.
GLENN: Right. That's taxation without representation.
I don't want to bail them out.
It was -- it's their fault, they did this. I've always wanted to live in California.
I never have, because it was insane. I knew that it was not going to work. So why do I have to pay for it?
STEPHEN: Exactly. Bingo. And incidentally, you're right. You can understand why people might leave New York for Florida. You know, in Florida, it's beautiful weather. In Florida, and rains a lot. And probably in New York. But how do you screw up California?
I mean, California is one of the probably most idyllic places in the planet. And people are living. This is the first time in 250 years people have been -- more people are leaving California than going to California. That's never happened before!
STU: That's unbelievable. Unbelievable.
STEPHEN: Yeah.
GLENN: Okay. So can you spend some time with me --
STEPHEN: Can I make one more point about this?
GLENN: Yeah.
STEPHEN: The governor of California is now the lead candidate to run on the Democratic ticket for president: Gavin Newsom. The guy who is -- what's he going to run on? "I'll do for America what I did for California?"
GLENN: Yes.
And so many people will buy into it!
I mean, I don't know what's wrong. It's so frustrating, because you try to apply logic. And you're like, but none of this makes sense! None of it. What are you doing?
I would love to be able to sit down and have a conversation, but none of this makes sense.





