The Matt Walsh Show, Ep. 1751

Title: The INSANE Left Wing Law That Is Causing Another Mass Exodus. What Happens Next?
Date: March 17, 2026
Host: Matt Walsh (The Daily Wire)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Matt Walsh examines the increasing exodus of wealthy individuals from progressive, Democrat-controlled states to conservative, Republican-controlled ones. He attributes this "locust-like" migration to punishing new wealth taxes and left-wing policies that, in his view, have eroded the social and economic fabric of cities like Seattle, New York, and Los Angeles. Additional topics include the efficacy of government spending on homelessness, the political responses to leftist violence, debates around voter ID laws, and critiques of modern culture's obsession with victimhood and self-pity.

Walsh also tackles the rise of new government offices for LGBT affairs, the nature of introspection and self-knowledge among historical leaders (responding to comments from tech billionaire Marc Andreessen), and the proliferation of "made-up illnesses" such as Long Covid.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Wealth Tax "Exodus" from Blue States

• Summary:
  Walsh opens by highlighting a "mass exodus" of left-wing billionaires (and broader populations) from blue to red states, triggered by the adoption of wealth taxes and progressive policies that purportedly drive both businesses and individuals away.
• Examples:
  • Howard Schultz (Starbucks) leaves Seattle for Florida, soon after the passing of Washington’s "millionaires tax" ([13:54]).
  • Other high-profile movers: Jeff Bezos, Google’s Larry Page & Sergey Brin, Ken Griffin (Citadel), Travis Kalanick (Uber), and Mark Zuckerberg, all either moving to or buying property in states like Texas or Florida ([16:13],[17:44]).

Notable Quote:

"They pushed the policies that destroyed their home states and now they're fleeing like locusts searching for new places to destroy." — Matt Walsh ([02:11])

Critical Analysis:

Walsh criticizes these ultra-wealthy individuals for supporting and benefiting from progressive policies, only to escape their consequences by moving—and for failing to denounce the dysfunction their politics created.

Historical Comparison:

• Cites France, Ireland, Sweden, and Switzerland as historical examples where wealth taxes led to capital flight, and were later repealed ([22:40]).

2. The Starbucks Civil Rights Lawsuit

• Summary:
  Walsh revisits the 2018 Starbucks incident, where two Black men were arrested in Philadelphia after refusing to leave without an order. The resulting public outcry led CEO Howard Schultz to close stores for "racial bias training."
• Outcome:
  A White district manager, Shannon Phillips, was fired for refusing to terminate another White manager “for the sake of racial equity.” Phillips sued Starbucks for discrimination and won over $25 million ([08:08]).

Notable Quote:

"There were no white supremacists working at Starbucks. But Starbucks did have an awful lot of executives who despise the white working class." — Matt Walsh ([12:40])

Walsh’s Take:

• Progressive CEOs perform public displays of “equity,” often resulting in unjust scapegoating of innocent employees.
• These same executives later abandon the chaos they helped create, moving to low-tax states without self-reflection ([14:20]).

3. Failures of Government Spending on Homelessness

• Summary:
  Walsh argues that progressive urban centers squander billions on homelessness, yet the problem only gets worse.
• Data Points:
  • NYC spends more per homeless person than the median household earns: $81,705 per year ([33:56]).
  • San Francisco & Portland have also seen massive increases in spending, with little to show for it.
  • Example: LA’s $20 million for 32 units in Marina Del Rey, which still sits unfinished ([36:45]).

Notable Quote:

"None of these non-profits have any incentive to actually fix the problem of homelessness, because if they did that, the money would disappear." — Matt Walsh ([38:17])

Assertion:

• The incentives are misaligned: Activist organizations benefit from a perpetually unsolved problem.

Proposed Solutions:

• Stronger economic conditions (job creation).
• Border security to stop drugs like fentanyl.
• An end to top-down, big-government “solutions.”

4. Critique of Progressive Urban Leadership

• Summary:
  Walsh lampoons Seattle’s socialist mayor for celebrating personal financial dependence and lack of private-sector experience, arguing that such leaders epitomize the failures of big-city governance ([27:37]).
• Example:
  • Mayor openly relies on parents to help pay for her child's daycare and touts it as relatable—a stance Walsh sees as fundamentally disqualifying for leadership.

Notable Quote:

“The only way she knows how to solve her problems is to rely on other people’s money. That’s it. That’s her only qualification.” — Matt Walsh ([29:12])

5. Debate Over the SAVE Act (Voter ID Legislation)

• Summary:
  Extensive critique of Republican leadership for lacking the will to use procedural maneuvers to force passage of the SAVE Act (which mandates voter ID and proof of citizenship).
• Context:
  Senate Majority Leader John Thune is reluctant to employ a talking filibuster, citing potential for Democrat retaliation in the future. Trump demands Republicans press the issue.

Notable Quotes:

“We are way past the point of symbolic gestures. The Republicans have no excuse.” — Matt Walsh ([48:39])

“Democrats are going to do all the things that the Republicans did not have the gumption to do themselves.” — Matt Walsh ([51:59])

Analysis:

Walsh insists that Republicans are squandering their political capital and that Democrats will, if given control, abolish the filibuster and aggressively pursue their agenda.

6. Governmental Expansion: New York’s Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs

• Summary:
  Walsh mocks NYC’s new agency for LGBTQIA+ affairs, labeling it another symbol of leftist priorities. He predicts that under renewed Democratic control at the national level, the focus on LGBT issues will return with force ([59:27]).
• Analysis:
  • Argues that LGBT activism is central to the left’s “war on civilization” and is tied to social narcissism.

Notable Quote:

“Leftists are waging war on civilization, waging war on God. And the LGBT agenda is an integral part of that battle plan.” — Matt Walsh ([01:02:05])

7. Refutation of Marc Andreessen’s Claim About Introspection

• Summary:
  Responding to tech billionaire Marc Andreessen’s claim (“have zero introspection—move forward, go”), Walsh supplies a blistering rebuttal by naming historical figures renowned for self-reflection—philosophers, artists, rulers, and generals alike ([01:08:44]).
• Analysis:
  • Argues that deep introspection was common among greatness in history, and that today’s culture has confused introspection with self-pity and narcissism.
  • Therapy culture marks a true change: once about knowing oneself, modern focus is “feeling good about yourself” ([01:12:55]).

Notable Quotes:

“The men of history had rich, vibrant, interior lives. It’s people today who are dead inside, who are unthinking, who have no introspection.” — Matt Walsh ([01:11:35])

"For modern man... the question they ask themselves is 'How do I feel about myself?' For historical man... the question was, 'What do I know about myself?'" — Matt Walsh ([01:14:18])

8. Modern Culture and “Made-up Illnesses”: Long Covid as Metaphor

• Summary:
  Walsh ridicules Long Covid Awareness Day, highlighting the CDC’s ever-expanding symptom list as an emblem of a culture obsessed with victimhood and invisible disease.
• Diagnostic Satire:
  • "If you think you have Long Covid, then you do, because... anything at all is a symptom of it." ([01:18:45])
  • Describes a general left-wing penchant for unprovable maladies (Long Covid, ADHD) that offer social excuses and a route to eliciting pity.

Notable Quote:

"Liberals love these kinds of diseases. They can't get enough—they literally cannot get enough of them." — Matt Walsh ([01:21:45])

Cultural Critique:

• Pity is now prized above honor or respect; contemporary society elevates suffering (even imagined) for social capital.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Corporates Fleeing Blue States:

  "Predictably [the billionaires], in every case... either endorsed left wing policies or didn't object as those policies were taking hold. Now that things have gotten out of hand... they're all just running away." ([16:56])

• On Government-Waste on Homelessness:

  "Giving them more free stuff, and as a consequence you end up with more homeless people. Hmm, I wonder why that could be the case." ([34:39])

• On Symbolic Political Action:

  "We tried. We tried. Not good enough at all." ([55:52])

• On Modern Therapeutic Culture:

  "The great men of history had a rich interior life... but they weren't full of self-pity." ([01:13:27])

• On Diseases of Convenience:

  "We invent all these things so that everyone can be sick because everybody wants to be sick." ([01:22:25])

Timestamps of Major Segments

• [02:11] — Overview of the billionaire exodus from blue states.
• [08:08] — The Starbucks/BLM incident and lawsuit.
• [13:54] — Schultz and others leave for Florida; capital flight analysis.
• [22:40] — International history of failed wealth taxes.
• [26:30] — Critique of Seattle’s socialist mayor.
• [33:56] — NYC homelessness spending compared to median household income.
• [36:45] — LA’s $20 million homeless housing debacle.
• [48:39] — Republican intra-party debate over the SAVE Act.
• [59:27] — Introduction of NYC’s new Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs.
• [01:08:44] — Rebuttal to Marc Andreessen’s “no introspection” claim.
• [01:18:45] — Satire on Long Covid and the attraction to unprovable illnesses.

Final Thoughts

Matt Walsh uses this episode to argue that progressive policies—especially regarding taxation, race, government spending, and urban governance—inevitably lead to disaster and hypocrisy, as demonstrated by fleeing elites and growing urban dysfunction. He further warns of renewed leftist activism on LGBT issues, critiques the culture of victimhood epitomized by Long Covid, and rejects modern therapeutic self-absorption in favor of old-fashioned introspection and honor.

The language remains direct, sarcastic, and combative throughout, with pointed critiques and plenty of rhetorical flourishes designed to both inform and entertain his audience.