Ex-Trump official slapped down by CNN host for whining about war on 'job creators'

Former Trump White House Communications Director Mike Dubke didn't get a very credulous reception on a CNN panel Thursday morning when he accused Democrats of waging a war against "job creators."

This came in the middle of a discussion of New York's proposed "pied-à-terre tax," charging billionaires for owning high-value second homes — as well as the recent controversy over real estate billionaire and former Trump administration adviser Steven Roth comparing the phrase "tax the rich" to racial slurs.

"In the meantime, tax the rich racial slur," said CNN anchor Audie Cornish. "I'm going to go out on a limb and say, I'm sorry, what?"

Former Biden administration White House communications official Meghan Hays agreed, saying, "I'm surprised that his shareholders or whomever are not putting out statements saying we condemn this."

"On the right, what people are saying is this is socialism. You're going to drive away business," said Cornish. "But how do you counter that with the populist movement that conservatives had cultivated, a relationship with, which thinks very similarly?"

"Very similarly," agreed Dubke. "And I think this is this is a false comparison. I think you're absolutely right that that there with rising gas prices, with inflation and all of this, we do need to address those problems. The problem is this kind of stuff coming out of [NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani's] mouth and other Democrats is really just rhetoric. It is a — it is a quick fix that means nothing because at the end of the day, it's not going to change the graph that you just put out there, number one. Secondly, it's not going to — when you drive job creators out of areas of this country and drive them to lower-tax states like you see California to Texas, New York to Florida."

"A minute left," said Cornish. "I think I just want to add, it's a bigger problem than this. Those people creating jobs? Right now, that is not what the market is doing for them."

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