After former NYC mayor and 14th richest person in the world Michael Bloomberg changed his mind yet again about running for president over the weekend, Seth Meyers took A Closer Look at why. Specifically, why billionaires are so terrified of Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders either losing in 2020 because they want to institute a wealth tax, or winning in 2020 and instituting a wealth tax, that they keep putting their own wealth into cringeworthy White House runs.
Meyers didn't pull his punches: He pointed out that that the 47 million dollars Tom Steyer spent on his campaign in his first three months could have been used to fund grassroots organisations (or just pay Trump to resign), and replayed the *chef kiss* moment where Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz was heckled in no uncertain terms mere seconds after he floated his own presidential run. Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and their weaksauce rhetoric in recent weeks (and terrible haircuts) didn't escape ridicule either.
"People aren't just mad at billionaires out of jealousy or because candidates demonize them," Meyers pointed out. "These are real-world examples that are informing people's doubts that the wealthy can solve everything."
Meyers reserved a comedian's respect for Warren's gently snarky takes on her super-rich skeptics: "Damn, she used the internet against Bill Gates. Next she's going to get Clippy to endorse her."
In closing, Meyers said, borrowing a line from the New Yorker who heckled Schultz, if you're a super rich dude who's considering a run at the White House, you might just be an "egotistical billionaire asshole."
