Tag: taxes

Newsom’s Release of Tax Returns Called ‘an Insult to Transparency’

Gov. Gavin Newsom of California released four years of federal tax returns this week to carefully selected news outlets — a disclosure which one news outlet slammed as “sneaky” and an “insult to transparency.”

The release was prompted “in part by a federal investigation into the finances of his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom,” aides told the New York Times, one of the few publications tapped to view and report on the returns.

That’s the rub, critics said.

The California Post reported Saturday that the governor “only permitted a small group of favored media outlets to pore over 718 pages of documents while forbidding them from making copies,” a move it headlined as “sneaky” and the process an “insult to transparency.”

The Post, which had lobbied for their release, was not one of the chosen few.

In 2024, the most recent year released, the Newsoms reported a taxable income of about $1.39 million, $1 million of that from investments, according to the Times’ reporting on Friday.

The governor’s taxable wages from his salary as governor were about $192,000. According to that report “his wife’s wages were about $148,000.”

Until this week, Newsom and his wife have not released returns since he ran for reelection in 2022, though when he was first elected governor he promised to release them annually–but failed to do so, the Times noted.

His office told the newspaper that the new release was in response to “right-wing claims” that the couple enriched themselves during his time in office.

The Post and others, however, took umbrage at the methodology of the disclosure. The paper reported the release was made at a “carefully managed private media event Thursday in Sacramento.”

“Media outlets including the New York Times and Politico, whose reporters were ordered to use only a pen and paper to take notes on the documents, agreed to publish their findings Friday morning,” the Post wrote in its Saturday edition.

The Times confirmed that restricted note-taking scenario as well.

The Post published comments from two critical congressmen from the Golden State.

“If the governor is truly committed to transparency, it makes little sense to pick and choose who that transparency extends to,” Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA), a former state legislator, told the tabloid. “This appears to be another Newsom story where the factual details are very different from the self-proclaimed headline.”

Rep. James Gallagher (R-CA) also weighed in, saying, “Newsom’s transparency is a lot like his homelessness policy — it leaves a lot to be desired.”

He continued, “He talks big about things but never actually delivers. This is another instance of that — only allowing select people and only pen and paper. This isn’t real transparency. There are still a lot of questions where Gavin’s money comes from.”

According to the Times:

The returns, which were released for 2021 through 2024, show that Mr. Newsom’s finances have been fairly stable over the years, except in 2021, when the family’s income received a $1 million boost after they sold a multimillion-dollar home. Mr. Newsom has filed for an extension to file his 2025 return, which is due in October.

Tax returns often do not indicate how much a person’s wealth has grown through investments and business holdings. Many asset classes grew substantially in value between 2021 and 2024, yet the Newsoms’ income remained roughly the same. The governor and his wife both have significant investments in blind trusts, and only the income from those investments was reflected in the tax returns.

The couple, the Times reported, earned the bulk of their joint income from the governor’s investment in the wine and hospitality industry, held in a blind trust. His wife’s income stemmed from nonprofits with which she is associated.

The governor, who published his memoir Young Man in a Hurry, also earned $70,000 as an author in 2023 and $75,000 in $2024, presumably as advances for that book or royalties for a children’s book he also wrote.

Over the period released, the couple’s donations to charity ranged from a low of $40,000 in 2021 to a high of $67,000 in 2023. The names of organizations receiving cash were withheld, according to the Times, while recipients of non-cash donations were included.

One such donation was “Armani business wear” to a justice nonprofit in Oakland, the clothing costing them $45,000 but listed at a “thrift shop value” of only $4900. Other donations like toys and furniture went to Goodwill Industries.

The couple also paid additional taxes for domestic staff members and babysitters, reportedly paying nearly $200,000 in wages for household employees in 2024.

The returns came especially into focus after the governor disclosed recently that he and his wife are subjects of a federal investigation, which he claims is politically motivated.

Newsom in the past has accused the administration of weaponizing the Justice Department against him because he is a likely contender in the 2028 presidential election.

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USEFUL IDIOT: Left Wing Political Commentator is SHOCKED That He is Being Hit With Zohran Mamdani’s New Tax on New Yorkers

Scott Galloway is a left wing political commentator and professor at NYU. He hates President Trump and has never heard a far left policy he didn’t like.

But now he is complaining that he has been hit with Zohran Mamdani’s new pied-à-terre tax, which hits New Yorkers who own a valuable second home.

Galloway is complaining that he has been ‘doxed’ because his name appears in the Mamdani administration’s searchable database for these properties.

FOX News reports:

Prominent liberal podcaster and NYU professor Scott Galloway called out New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s publicly accessible database, saying it endangers landowners like himself.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani opened a new front in his ongoing battle with New York City’s wealthy after his administration published a searchable database identifying affluent property owners who could be subject to the city’s proposed pied-à-terre tax, a move critics say could expose them to harassment and public safety risks.

The database, released by the city’s Department of Finance, allows users to search properties and view the names and addresses of owners whose non-primary residences could be subject to the proposed tax. A spokesperson for the department said publication of the property roll was required by state law…

“I’ve been doxed,” the liberal professor announced on the podcast. “I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Mayor Mamdani has decided to release a list of the 950,000 residences with addresses and names that might be eligible for his pied-à-terre tax.”

“I don’t love this,” co-host Kara Swisher agreed. “I can’t say I love this. It feels a little bit like doxing. Just tax them and get on with it is my feeling.”…

“He’s taken a legitimate source of tax revenue, and he’s turning it into a wanted poster,” he said of Mamdani’s tax list. “The question I would have is, other than trying to identify and imply these people have done something wrong — and then, 18 months after a healthcare CEO was executed in the street, published the list — what is the upside here? Why is he doing this?”

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Canada: The Illusion Of Free Healthcare

With the rise in popularity of the Democratic Socialist movement in the United States, one of the promises made to voters is “free healthcare.” Advocates frame healthcare as a human right, pointing north to Canada as the example of universal coverage.

The slogan is simple, powerful, and politically effective: Canadians enjoy free healthcare. The belief that Canadian healthcare is free stems from the fact that Canadians do not pay at the point of service. Yet the question remains: Is it truly free, and what does “free” actually mean?

Anyone applying basic logic and common sense quickly realizes that a system as complex as healthcare, involving doctors, nurses, hospitals, equipment, pharmaceuticals, and administrators, cannot exist without someone paying for it. The real question is not whether money is paid, but how it is collected, who controls it, and how the system functions behind the scenes.

Canada’s healthcare system is often described as universal, equitable, and accessible. But beneath the surface lies a prepaid tax‑funded model controlled almost entirely by government. The mechanics of this system are not widely understood by the average Canadian consumer, largely because the costs are hidden within layers of taxation rather than presented as a monthly insurance premium or deductible.

In Canada, healthcare funding flows through a combination of federal transfers (CHT), provincial taxes, employer payroll taxes, and individual income‑based health premiums. These mechanisms create the illusion of “free” care because the consumer never sees a bill at the doctor’s office. Instead, the costs are embedded in the tax structure, quietly deducted long before the patient ever steps into a clinic.

One of the most significant components of Canadian healthcare funding is the Employer Health Tax (EHT)—a payroll tax applied to businesses based on total compensation paid to employees. In provinces such as Manitoba and Quebec, this tax can reach over four percent of payroll.

While the tax is levied on employers, its economic burden does not remain there. Businesses inevitably pass these costs on to consumers through higher prices, reduced wages, or slower hiring. Canadians may not see a healthcare bill, but they pay for healthcare every time they buy groceries, fill their gas tank, or purchase consumer goods whose prices have quietly risen to absorb payroll taxes.

Beyond employer taxes, individual Canadians also contribute directly through provincial health premiums and income‑based surcharges. Ontario, for example, includes a “Health Premium” on its tax return that can reach up to $900 per year depending on income. Other provinces embed healthcare funding within general income tax brackets, meaning a portion of every paycheck is siphoned into the healthcare system without explicit labeling.

This is why many Canadians believe they pay nothing for healthcare—because the payment is hidden inside broader taxation rather than itemized as a healthcare expense. In reality, most middle‑income Canadians contribute between $400 and $800 annually through these mechanisms, in addition to the indirect costs they incur due to higher consumer prices.

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Federal government approved pay raises for 336,188 bureaucrats despite weak department performance

The federal government approved pay raises for 336,188 public servants in 2025, even as departments continued to miss nearly half of their own performance targets, according to access-to-information records obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

The records show 78 per cent of federal employees received a pay increase last year, while only 596 employees — about 0.14 per cent of the federal workforce — saw their pay reduced.

“Taxpayers have every reason to question why the vast majority of bureaucrats are taking bigger paycheques when departments can barely pass their own test,” said CTF Federal Director Franco Terrazzano. “Federal bureaucrats shouldn’t feel entitled to more money every year just because they’re on the taxpayer payroll.”

The latest figures continue a long-running trend. About 385,000 federal employees received raises in 2024, while more than one million pay increases were granted between 2020 and 2023. The federal government has not disclosed the total cost of the salary increases.

CTF General Counsel Devin Drover criticized the government’s refusal to release the financial impact of the raises, calling it another example of Canada’s weak access-to-information system.

“Taxpayers are on the hook for another wage hike, but the government won’t tell Canadians the price tag,” Drover said. “Taxpayers pay these wages and they have a right to know the bill.”

According to federal performance reports, departments met just 54 percent of their own performance targets in 2024, their best result in the past five years. In two of those years, departments failed to meet even half of their stated objectives.

The report also points to research from the Fraser Institute showing government employees earned an average wage premium of 4.8 percent over comparable private-sector workers after accounting for factors such as education, experience and occupation.

Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Budget Officer projects the cost of the federal bureaucracy will reach $79.4 billion this year, exceeding spending levels during the final year of Justin Trudeau’s government after adjusting for inflation. Public Accounts data show the cost of the federal bureaucracy increased 80 percent between 2015 and 2024.

Despite Prime Minister Mark Carney’s pledge to “spend less” and Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s commitment to return the civil service to a “more sustainable level,” the Parliamentary Budget Officer projects personnel costs will continue to rise.

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Vance: WH Task Force to Eliminate Fraud has identified $230B in improper payments, systemic waste and criminal fraud across fed. agencies

Vice President JD Vance announced that the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud has identified approximately $230 billion in improper payments, systemic waste and alleged criminal fraud across federal agencies since its inception.

Speaking at a White House gathering alongside senior administration officials and state enforcement leaders, Vance highlighted the tally as evidence of widespread vulnerabilities within federal safety-net programs, disaster relief initiatives, and government procurement channels that were left largely unaddressed in previous years.

“There are a few things that I want to talk about and celebrate. The first is that just since the beginning of the fraud task force that I started under the president’s leadership and direction, we have identified 230 billion dollars of fraud that’s being perpetrated against the American people, and we have halted already 56 billion dollars of that,” Vance said during a Cabinet meeting on Friday.

“It’s sometimes hard once the money has already gone out the door; it’s hard to get it back. But stopping it from going out the door is how we save the American people. $56 billion, and of course, we’re going to keep on working on that,” he added.

Established by presidential executive order, the interagency task force chaired by Vance was charged with launching a comprehensive federal crackdown on illicit operations exploiting public funds.

The $230 billion figure encompasses a broad array of uncovered abuses, including tens of billions in fraudulent or delinquent pandemic-era small business loans, improper Medicaid and Medicare billing claims, unauthorized government contracts and improper benefits disbursements across state-administered welfare programs.

Vance emphasized further that the task force’s rapid findings demonstrate the urgent necessity of restoring more rigorous oversight and pre-payment integrity standards across the executive branch. Notably, a central component of the enforcement drive involves structural coordination with the newly established National Fraud Enforcement Division within the Department of Justice (DOJ).

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Brampton PC MPP Hardeep Grewal billed taxpayers nearly $20,000 for Toronto hotels

Ontario PC MPP Hardeep Grewal charged taxpayers nearly $20,000 for hotel stays in downtown Toronto despite representing a Brampton riding less than 50 kilometres from Queen’s Park.

Grewal, the MPP for Brampton East and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation, submitted $19,827.73 in hotel expense claims between 2023 and 2026 under the legislature’s “special circumstances” accommodation policy.

The policy is intended for exceptional situations, such as severe weather or other emergencies that prevent an MPP from returning home. However, a review of expense records by Global News found most of the claims occurred during the spring and fall legislative sessions, suggesting the hotel stays had become routine rather than exceptional.

Grewal’s constituency office is approximately 43 kilometres from Queen’s Park.

Premier Doug Ford’s office has since said that any hotel expenses that did not meet the intent of the rules will be repaid to taxpayers.

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Guess Who’s Funding Barricades And Porta-Potties At Madison’s Marxist-Antifa Encampment

Far-left foot soldiers linked with Black Lives Matter and Antifa have established a two-block autonomous zone along Williamson Street in Madison, Wisconsin, following the death of 38-year-old Corey Durrell Ruiz.

Ruiz, who had reportedly been released from prison (read report) shortly before the incident, was approached by police while riding a bicycle after allegedly attempting to enter several vehicles. Far-left activists have since designated the occupied area the Corey Ruiz Autonomous Zone, or CRAZ.

The encampment appears designed to demonstrate control over public space while creating conditions in which any police intervention could be framed as state repression. However, reporting from local media and anti-communist commentator Karlyn Borysenko suggests the local government is accommodating, and potentially enabling, the occupation rather than moving to dismantle it.

“So who’s funding the barricades and the porta-potties in the BLM/Antifa autonomous zone (the CRAZ) in Madison, Wisconsin? You’re not going to believe the answer. And I provide the receipts to prove it,” Borysenko wrote on X.

Borysenko pointed to reporting from local outlet WMTV 15 News that says the municipal government is funding part of the CRAZ.

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Mississauga Centre PC MPP Natalia Kusendova-Bashta billed taxpayers $4,258 for six Toronto hotel stays

Mississauga Centre PC MPP Natalia Kusendova-Bashta billed taxpayers $4,258 for six hotel stays in downtown Toronto despite representing a riding within commuting distance of Queen’s Park.

Expense disclosures from the Ontario Legislature show Kusendova-Bashta claimed $4,258 under the Legislature’s “Special Circumstance Accommodation in Toronto” policy through six separate hotel claims between 2023 and 2025.

Ontario’s expense rules allow MPPs who live within 50 kilometres of Queen’s Park to claim overnight accommodations only in exceptional circumstances, such as severe weather or other emergencies that make returning home impractical. Mississauga Centre is well within commuting distance of the Legislature.

Kusendova-Bashta’s claims are part of the broader Ford government hotel expense scandal that saw Toronto-area Progressive Conservative MPPs collectively bill taxpayers more than $100,000 for Toronto hotel stays under the “special circumstances” allowance.

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Setting Marijuana Taxes Too High Drives Consumers To The Illegal Market, Federally Funded Study Finds

States that impose high tax rates on regulated marijuana products are driving adult consumers to the illicit market, according to a new federally funded study.

The research, published in the journal Health Economics, looked at past-month cannabis purchasing behavior of 1,525 adults aged 21 and older.

Researchers with Ohio State University found that high cannabis taxes and prices are linked to “lower cannabis consumption and THC intake” from legal purchases, but that the majority of those reductions (89 percent) may be offset by consumers switching to unregulated products from the illegal market.

“If the illegal market is restricted, policymakers can expect increasing cannabis prices using excise taxes to reduce both unit and THC consumption, while generating tax revenues,” the study said. “However, given the sizable illegal market, a large portion of the consumption reduction due to taxes may be offset by switching to illegal products.”

States have worked to strike a balance between pricing marijuana low enough to transition adults to the regulated market but still high enough to generate revenue. The results so far have been mixed, with no firmly established universal price or tax rate.

States that impose high tax rates on regulated marijuana products are driving adult consumers to the illicit market, according to a new federally funded study.

The research, published in the journal Health Economics, looked at past-month cannabis purchasing behavior of 1,525 adults aged 21 and older.

Researchers with Ohio State University found that high cannabis taxes and prices are linked to “lower cannabis consumption and THC intake” from legal purchases, but that the majority of those reductions (89 percent) may be offset by consumers switching to unregulated products from the illegal market.

“If the illegal market is restricted, policymakers can expect increasing cannabis prices using excise taxes to reduce both unit and THC consumption, while generating tax revenues,” the study said. “However, given the sizable illegal market, a large portion of the consumption reduction due to taxes may be offset by switching to illegal products.”

States have worked to strike a balance between pricing marijuana low enough to transition adults to the regulated market but still high enough to generate revenue. The results so far have been mixed, with no firmly established universal price or tax rate.

The study, meanwhile, also demonstrated that legal and illicit cannabis flower are essentially “substitutes for each other.”

Raising the price of legal cannabis flower by 10 percent “results in a 0.9 percent-1 percent increase in illegal flower consumption (units and THC),” and the inverse follows a similar pattern, the researchers found.

“While the cross‐price elasticities for unit demand between legal and illegal flowers are symmetric (not statistically significant), the cross elasticities for THC demand suggest that the increase in THC from illegal flowers in response to higher legal flower prices exceeds the increase from legal flowers in response to higher illegal flower prices.”

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What in the Actual? Mamdani Doxxes NYC’s Wealthy by Publishing Their Names and Addresses

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) just made it a whole lot easier for anyone to look up the names and home addresses of wealthy New Yorkers who own second properties in the city.

How? By publishing a searchable database of properties that could fall under the new pied-à-terre tax, complete with the owners’ full names and addresses.

The list covers unoccupied, non-primary residences worth more than $1 million across the five boroughs.

The New York Post reports that the move by the administration is “effectively doxxing thousands of wealthy New Yorkers.”

I’m almost certain that those individuals are thrilled to have their potentially empty homes’ addresses advertised to unhinged “tax the rich” leftists.

For property owners who already felt targeted by the city’s new tax push, having their personal information posted online is only pouring fuel on the fire, which is the intent, really. Mamdani is literally trying to drive wealthy individuals out of the city that serves as the economic engine of the nation.

It fits a clear pattern of taunting. RedState’s Nick Arama detailed how Mamdani recently mocked second-home owners online by gloating that notification letters for the new pied-à-terre tax were already in the mail and that “you’ve got mail.”

Arama accurately described the derisive message as “gross,” which might as well be an evergreen description going forward for Mamdani’s economically illiterate reign.

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