Rising contrarian star at CNN Shermichael Singleton completely tore apart New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani for continuing to sell the socialist snake oil of wealth redistribution even as the rich flee the city and constituents feel the squeeze.
Singleton — who won the MRC Bulldog Award for Outstanding Achievement Behind Enemy Lines — joined the May 6 edition of CNN Newsnight and cut loose on the leftist economic cesspool that’s overtaking the Big Apple. “1.6 percent of the wealthiest people in this city pay nearly half of the taxes.” If those folks leave, Singleton rebuked, “you’re going to have a financial crisis the magnitude of which Mamdani does not understand.”
He’s right on the money (no pun intended). Recently, both Citadel CEO Ken Griffin and firm Apollo Global Management have signaled moves to join the billionaire exodus from the city following Mamdani’s ridiculous “tax the rich” antics. “We will add far more jobs in Miami over the next decade as an immediate and direct consequence of the mayor's poor decision here,” Griffin told CNBC.
As Singleton concluded, “Socialism is great as long as it’s someone else’s money.” He also pointed to everyone on the CNN panel with him, “At some point, everyone at this damn TABLE will be next because of our income levels!”
Mamdani will run out of rich people to tax, and his utopia will fail to come into fruition. As I stated tonight, Mamdani’s philosophy is flawed and shortsighted. Socialism is great as long as it’s someone else’s money.
— Shermichael Singleton (@MrShermichael) May 7, 2026
Additionally, targeting Ken Griffin (@leddalhlwe) who has… pic.twitter.com/wxoSEZkCoa
For all of the educational, security and public transitthat NYC feeds with boatloads of tax dollars, Singleton pointed out, “what in the hell are they going to do if 44 percent of those dollars all of a sudden disappear overnight?” This is proof in the pudding why socialism and common sense make strange bedfellows.
Manhattan Institute senior fellow John Ketchum highlighted the obvious to the New York Post May 6, “Investors and job creators have options and they will go where they’re treated well.” He continued: “Increasingly New York City has treated them inhospitably. New York City leaders have assumed they can’t do business elsewhere, even though we have seen in the last several years a dramatic expansion of the financial sector’s activities in states like Florida and Texas.”
To Singleton’s point, every progressive media talking head can wave around the flag of the hammer and sickle until it ends up taking a big bite out of their wallets.
Congratulations again to Mr. Singleton for winning this year's MRC Bulldog award!
