The rubber meets the road in California this fall when a proposed one-time 5% tax on the state’s billionaire class – wealth taxes being a longtime progressive hobby horse – faces a public vote in the form of Proposition 40. Joshua Rauh, the Hoover Institution’s George P. Shultz Senior Fellow in economics and author of a data analysis of Prop 40’s fiscal and economic impacts, explains why the measure would be a “disaster” if enacted and whether the policy battle marks the beginning of more public engagement on the part of the wealthiest Californians or instead will speed up their exodus from the Golden State. After that: the fellows reflect on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on America – where they were that fateful day and 9/11’s legacy as it pertains to the war on terror, social divides and global alliances (if a similar attack happened today, would Vladimir Putin still be the first world leader to offer assistance to the American president?). Finally, in the “Lightning Round”: the pros and cons of an ascendant world senior population; the merits of “financial engineering” as governments spend and borrow more; disorder in the ranks as more of America’s military leaders part ways with the Pentagon; young conservatives’ “Nixonmaxxing” (and revising presidential history).
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Articles
I posted earlier this week about a Zoom meeting with the editorial board of a major California newspaper. One of the members of the board, who was skeptical about Proposition 42 and saw it mainly as a way to protect billionaires from Proposition 40, asked me what percent of wealth in California is held by non-billionaires.
September 4, 2026
Podcasts
Hoover Institution fellow Josh Rauh argues that the proposed billionaire tax on California’s November ballot would face legal challenges, raise far less than proponents claim, and push wealthy residents out of the state.
September 2, 2026
Articles
State rulemakers shouldn’t rush into transforming an existing marketplace where consumers buy what they want and can afford. Innovation and competition mean better products will prevail without coercion.
August 31, 2026
