‘Tax the Rich’ Won't Save Cities Like New York

“Tax the Rich” is a catchy, intuitive and politically potent slogan. In a period of rapid wealth creation alongside rising costs and constrained opportunity, it speaks to a real and widely felt imbalance. Whether one sees that divide as a moral failure or a market outcome, it demands attention.

The catchphrase’s simplicity, though, obscures more consequential issues. The challenge facing cities like New York is structural. Taxing the rich, done thoughtfully, can be part of the solution. Done poorly, it can make things worse. The core issue is not simply fairness, which is inherently subjective. It is structural risk.