LOS ANGELES (WCAX) – Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders took his pitch for a wealth tax to California on Friday, rallying in support of a proposed one-time, 5% tax on billionaires’ assets that would fund health care for low-income residents.
California has more billionaires than any other state. Advocates, including some unions, are working to place the initiative on the June ballot.
The proposal faces opposition from Silicon Valley and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said it will drive high earners out of the state.
Sanders said the working class deserves a break.
“The billionaire class cannot have it all,” said Sanders, I-Vermont. “So the issue comes down to whether or not we ask the wealthiest people in this country– many of them living right here in California– to start paying their fair share of taxes, so that 3 million people in the state can get health care. And I think the answer is pretty obvious. Yes, that’s what we’ve got to do.”
Sanders also said he plans to introduce a national version of the wealth tax.
