Bill Ackman Blasts Ro Khanna For Defending Billionaire Tax: ‘Lost His Way’

The CEO of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management, billionaire Bill Ackman, publicly rescinded his support for Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) over the weekend, accusing the congressman of “losing his way” for defending a controversial new California wealth tax proposal.

Accusation Of Flip-Flop

In a post on X, Ackman highlighted what he sees as a policy contradiction by the congressman. He shared a 2024 CNBC clip in which Khanna argued against a “blanket tax on unrealized gains,” explaining why he believed it was not a good policy.

Ackman contrasted that 2024 stance with Khanna’s current vocal defense of a proposed California measure that would tax the assets of residents worth over $1 billion, regardless of whether those assets are sold.

“Ro Khanna has lost his way. I used to support him,” Ackman wrote, signaling a sharp break with the typically business-friendly Democrat over the shift in economic philosophy.

.@RoKhanna has lost his way. I used to support him. https://t.co/bkpv9wpYVx

— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) December 29, 2025

See Also: California Wants a 5% ‘Billionaire Tax’ — Will The Ultra-Rich Pay Up Or Pack Up?

Tax Controversy

The dispute centers on a proposed California initiative that could impose a tax of up to 5% on the net worth of billionaires.

Ackman has warned that this policy path is “self-destruction” for the state, arguing aggressive taxation will drive entrepreneurs and job creators elsewhere.

California is on a path to self-destruction. Hollywood is already toast and now the most productive entrepreneurs will leave taking their tax revenues and job creation elsewhere.

And then the Democrats highlight @CAgovernor Newsom as a great leader. Crazy. https://t.co/bFyLhARrNn

— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) December 27, 2025

Reports indicate tech titans like Peter Thiel and Google co-founder Larry Page are already considering leaving California to avoid the potential levy.

Venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya echoed Ackman’s concerns, warning the tax could “kill entrepreneurship” by forcing founders to liquidate holdings to pay taxes on paper wealth.

It’s not 1% a year for 5 years.

It’s a one time 5% tax on all assets and it will kill entrepreneurship in California.

Here is an example:

John Doe starts a company. He takes a nominal salary – say $150k for this example – and the rest in equity in the company. Let’s say he… https://t.co/zdq1bqovXX

— Chamath Palihapitiya (@chamath) December 28, 2025

Khanna, however, has stood firm. He dismissed the threats of an exodus, arguing that critics are “glossing over Silicon Valley history” and that the region’s deep talent pool and ecosystem are larger than individual billionaires.

Santa Claus Rally

During the truncated Christmas week, all three benchmark indices closed on a positive note. While the S&P 500 and Dow Jones indices rose 2.02% and 1.53%, respectively, the Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.04% over the last five sessions.

Year-to-date, the S&P 500 was 18.09% higher, whereas the Nasdaq Composite and Dow Jones gained 22.37% and 14.91%, respectively, on a year-to-date basis.

However, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, closed on Friday. The SPY was down 0.010% at $690.31, while the QQQ declined 0.0064% to $623.89, according to Benzinga Pro data.

The futures of Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 indices were mixed on Monday.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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