Blakeman said that instead of paying a new tax, wealthy New Yorkers are simply leaving. "This tax is very, very dumb. These people will move."

He said Democratic policies have already hurt the state in recent years. "We're basically running them out of town. And think about it.

"In the last four years, we've lost 11 billion dollars in revenue from high net worth individuals who moved out of state."

Blakeman argued that targeting high income residents is turning out to be a burden on everyone in New York.