Billionaire and former Goldman Sachs partner Michael Novogratz urged his rich friends to “lighten up” about Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and her plans to impose a wealth tax if she’s elected president.
“You’re not victims; you’re the richest people in the world,” Novogratz said Friday in an interview with Bloomberg. “How in God’s name do you feel like a victim?”
“It’s insanity,” he said. ”‘They’re going to come and get us.’ No! You’re going to get taxed a little more. Lighten up!”
Novogratz, who is now invested in cryptocurrency, said it makes sense to tax the wealthy to help those who are struggling in the nation.
“The way the country is functioning today, the bottom 60% aren’t doing well,” Novogratz noted. Warren is “speaking to that group. She wants to redistribute.”
He said that 97% of the “people in my world are really, really fearful of her.”
They “don’t like her, they’re worried about her, they think she’s anti-rich,” he added. “It’s a little carried away.”
Novogratz said he’d prefer a more “centrist” Democratic candidate but isn’t yet convinced anyone else can win. He called Warren a “good politician” as well as “smart” and “witty.”