Inside the Beltway: New York City faces impending exodus

NEWS AND OPINION:

The Big Apple could soon get down-sized. Well-heeled New Yorkers continue to grapple with the challenges posed by life in New York City under Democratic leadership and trying circumstances. New research from the Manhattan Institute, a think tank espousing free market ideas, reveals a very glum situation in good old Gotham.

The organization cites the grim reality among residents who earn $100,000 or more. They make up 80% of New York City’s income-tax revenue, placing the city government at risk to “tax-base erosion.” Personal income tax, in fact accounts for 22% of the city’s overall take in tax revenues. Many residents have had just about enough.

“We found that 44% of high-income New Yorkers say that they have considered relocating outside the city in the past four months, with cost of living cited as the biggest reason. More than half of high-income New Yorkers are working entirely from home, and nearly two-thirds believe that this will be the new normal for the city. Of those considering leaving New York City, 30% say that the possibility of working remotely makes it more likely that they will move,” the analysis reports, citing the institute’s succinct new poll of high earners.

“Nearly two in five New Yorkers making six-figure salaries or higher believe that the city is headed in the wrong direction. These high-earning residents report a steep drop in the quality of life since March, with satisfaction cut in half since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the research said.

See more numbers in the Poll du Jour at column’s end.

FOR THE LEXICON

“The Red Wall.”

New motto originated by Allen B. West, chairman of the Texas GOP, who has now formed a “Vanguard Battalion” of Republican voters in the Lone Star State, where many Democratic candidates are making their presence felt.

“Liberals from across the country have set their sights on turning Texas blue. It’s their only goal. The battalion will serve as the Red Wall against the blue wave and help keep Texas red,” Mr. West says in a new voter outreach.

STAYING ON TASK

President Trump offered a telling distinction about the office he holds during a unique ABC News town hall Tuesday night, where the president took questions from undecided voters.

“At times, some have called your behavior not presidential. What, if anything, would you do differently if reelected, to create a more unified message where all sides can take responsibilities for their actions and come together to make positive change?” asked “Jim,” a voter from Pennsylvania.

“I’m fighting a battle. It’s a big battlefield, and I have a lot of forces against me. I have the media, which I call the fake news, because a lot of it is fake. I’m fighting a lot of forces. Sometimes you don’t have time to be totally, as you would say, presidential. You have to get things done. I think I’ve done more than other president in the first 3 years,” Mr. Trump replied.

THE COST OF IT ALL

Property damage from riots in 140 U.S. cities following George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody will cost the insurance industry more than any other violent demonstrations in recent history, according to a new analysis released by Axios on Wednesday.

Those events will result in at least $1 billion to $2 billion of paid insurance claims, topping the record set in 1992 by week-long riots in Los Angeles following the acquittal of police officers accused of beating Rodney King — which amounted to $1.4 billion.

“Property Claim Services has tracked insurance claims related to civil disorder since 1950. It classifies anything over $25 million in insured losses as a ’catastrophe,’ and reports that the unrest this year (from May 26 to June 8) will cost the insurance industry far more than any prior one,” the report noted.

That number could top $2 billion and possibly more, according to the Insurance Information Institute, which compiles industry information.

“The protests related to George Floyd’s death are also different because they are so widespread. It’s not just happening in one city or state — it’s all over the country,” Loretta L. Worters, vice president for communication for the organization, told Axios.

“And this is still happening, so the losses could be significantly more,” she said.

The Axios report now suggests that insurance industry is “rolling up its sleeves in anticipation of potential unrest” following the presidential election on Nov. 3.

THE DEMOCRAT-MEDIA COMPLEX AT WORK

Strategically timed, manipulative news coverage of President Trump continues to dwell on bogus claims that the president misled the nation about the coronavirus pandemic or sullied the memories of U.S. war heroes, among many other things.

“The Democrat-media complex has a new mission: to distract our attention from President Trump’s incredible — and I mean incredible — progress on both economic and foreign policy,” writes Andrew Puzder, a senior fellow at the Pepperdine University School of Public Policy, in an essay for The Federalist.

“Clearly, these hit pieces were never intended to be rational or believable — and they weren’t. Rather, they were carefully crafted and timed to draw attention away from the most remarkable economic comeback in American history and unprecedented progress towards peace in the Middle East,” Mr. Puzder continues.

“As we edge closer to November, expect more of these disingenuous efforts. Keep in mind that if a suspicious, eyebrow-raising narrative seems to be dominating the news cycle, it might not be the most important news of the day. In fact, it is likely another example of ’fake news’ — which really isn’t news at all,” he says.

POLL DU JOUR

• 44% of New York City residents with incomes over $100,000 have considered leaving the city in the past four months.

• 69% of this group cited the cost of living in the city, 47% cited crime.

• 46% now want a “non-urban lifestyle’; 34% worry about coronavirus in the city.

• 30% favor working from home from “some other location”; 15% cite difficulties with child care.

Source: A MANHATTAN INSTITUTE / SIENA COLLEGE SURVEY of 782 U.S. adults LIVING IN NEW YORK CITY WHO MAKE AT LEAST $100,000 PER YEAR. THE SURVEY WAS conducted from July 13 TO AUG. 3 and released WEDNESDAY.

• Kindly follow Jennifer Harper on Twitter @HarperBulletin.