The mayor of Dallas is predicting an influx of financial firms relocating to the region from New York City if the Big Apple’s newly inaugurated mayor, Zohran Mamdani, pursues socialist policies in the nation’s leading financial hub.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson told the New York Post in an exclusive interview that Mamdani’s policy preferences are an “un-American socialist impulse” that could compel financial firms and investors alike to “vote with their feet” and relocate to places with more business-friendly policies.
Johnson told FOX Business that the city welcomes the companies with “open arms.”
“Dallas doesn’t demonize successful businesses,” Johnson added. “Businesses know where they are wanted and will thrive. And financial services firms across the nation—especially in New York—are looking to Dallas because they can clearly see that this is America’s Sanctuary City from Socialism.”
The Dallas Republican noted that Texas has no state income tax and that local governments, such as the one he leads in Dallas, are working to lower other taxes and reduce regulatory burdens as well.
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“I’ve cut the property tax rate every year I’ve been in office now. So we’re talking seven straight years,” Johnson told the Post.
Mamdani has touted a range of ambitious socialist policies for New York City, including higher taxes on businesses and wealthy individuals, as well as city-owned grocery stores and fare-free bus service.
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Johnson said that, by contrast, the lower cost of living and friendlier political climate in Dallas will appeal to New Yorkers looking to move to an emerging financial hub.
“The cost of living is lower,” the Dallas mayor told the Post. “You can have the best of New York, but you can have it in a place where you can also afford to have a very nice home, send your kids to good schools, and be safe.”
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Johnson’s efforts to appeal to financial firms and workers looking for a new place to live comes as Texas has emerged as a popular destination for the industry.
“Now New York has a mayor who is openly hostile towards the business community and is pushing for higher taxes on job creators,” he told FOX Business. “As a result, I predict an avalanche of Wall Street firms moving to Dallas.”
JPMorgan Chase employs more workers in Texas than in New York, while Goldman Sachs is building a 14-floor campus in Dallas.
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