Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates was eviscerated on social media after balking at some Democratic candidates' wealth tax and hinting he'd vote for whoever is "more professional," which some took as a dog whistle for Trump.
Gates expressed some apprehension about the "wealth tax" proposed by Democrats Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, admitting he'd only be willing to fork over so much of his massive fortune. "I've paid over $10 billion in taxes, I've paid more than anyone in taxes! I'm glad to have—If I had to pay $20 billion, it's fine," he told the New York Times DealBook Conference on Wednesday.
Also on rt.com Brother, can you spare a dime? Jeff Bezos dethroned as world’s richest man"But when you say I should pay $100 billion, then I'm starting to do a little math about what I have left over," the world's richest man said, to laughter from the audience. "Just kidding," he added, while his body language suggested he wasn't.
Pressed to choose between President Donald Trump – who he has criticized before – and Warren, Gates got fidgety again, waving his hands around and promising to vote for whoever is "more professional."
I hope the more professional candidate is an electable candidate.
Gates has contributed to candidates in both parties, but pours money into progressive social causes. He was a fan of Trump's predecessor Barack Obama, lamenting that he did not have "more power" to push his agenda through Congress, and has slammed Trump for not "setting a good example" for Americans.
Hearing his refusal to commit, Democrats pounced on the software tycoon, interpreting his statement as a "threat" to vote for Trump.
A few mocked his math, pointing out that "even if someone was asking Bill Gates to pay $100 billion in taxes, and nobody is, he would still have more money left over than Oprah and Richard Branson have combined."
Others had more general scorn, suggesting there was no such thing as a "good billionaire" and reminding Twitter about his relationship with now-deceased convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
"The best case scenario there is that Bill Gates knowingly was chums with a pedo, worst case? You know."
Gates claimed to be apprehensive about even meeting with Warren, musing "I'm not sure how open-minded she is – or that she'd even be willing to sit down with somebody who has large amounts of money."
Warren, however, was eager to meet with the billionaire. As a Massachusetts Senator, Warren embraced big donors before she threw her hat in the presidential ring – only to drop them so fast some of them felt personally insulted.
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