San Francisco pro-billionaires rally draws dozens

A rally in support of the California billionaires did not attract a large crowd on Saturday, with the San Francisco Chronicle counting about three dozen people, along with dozens more counter-protesters.

To be fair, organizer Derek Kaufman expected only “a few dozen” to attend in advance. But the “Billionaires’ March” has attracted significant attention on social media because it’s a disproportionate idea, and according to Mission Local, journalists almost outnumbered protesters at the event itself, with demonstrators carrying signs with messages like “We ❤️ You’re Jeffrey Bezos” and “It’s very hard to write an accurate argument on a sign.”

The ostensible reason for the demonstration was to protest the Billionaire Tax Act, a proposed state ballot measure that would require Californians with more than $1 billion in wealth to pay a one-time 5% tax on their total wealth. If the measure actually passes, Gov. Gavin Newsom said he would veto it.

“I think California is the only state that offers health insurance to people who come into the country illegally,” Kaufman, who founded the AI ​​startup RunRL and is not a billionaire, told reporters. “I think we probably shouldn’t offer that.” (Fourteen states provide health care to illegal immigrants.)