California Gov. Gavin Newsom over the weekend renewed his claim that Florida and Texas are the "real high-tax states," arguing that lower- and middle-income residents in those states shoulder a heavier tax burden than their counterparts in the Golden State.
Speaking onstage at SXSW in Austin, Texas, the Democratic governor framed the issue in moral terms.
"We have the most progressive tax rates in America. Texas, the most regressive. Texas taxes poor folks more than we tax our richest. The question for you is who’s the higher tax state? California or Texas? Who are you for? Are you just for the 1% or are you for the 98%?" Newsom said, before taking a shot at Florida, which he called the "other regressive tax state."
"Your middle class pays more taxes in Texas than our middle class in California," Newsom added. "It’s a great mythology – it’s just ‘the richest of the rich come here because they can avoid paying a damn penny.’"
