Video Seattle mayor says bye to millionaires CEO of Rastegar Capital Ari Rastegar criticizes Seattle Mayor Katie Wilsons dismissive stance on millionaires relocating due to the upcoming millionaire tax.
A local radio host accused Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist, of irking Starbucks by calling for a boycott ahead of the hometown company’s decision to open a new hub in Nashville.
Starbucks has appeared to lessen its presence in Seattle, acknowledging in March it would be closing five additional stores in the city. That move follows several closures in 2025, including the Starbucks Reserve Roastery on Capitol Hill, as the coffee giant plans to add or relocate 2,000 jobs to Nashville.
Last year, Mayor Wilson declared at a barista picket line, "I am not buying Starbucks, and you should not either," according to The Seattle Times. The paper called it a "gaffe" to suggest locals should boycott the hometown company and KIRO Newsradio host Gee Scott seems to agree.
WHY STARBUCKS PICKED NASHVILLE OVER SEATTLE FOR EXPANSION, ACCORDING TO LOCAL BUSINESS REPORTER
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson looks on after the ceremonial first pitch before the game between the Seattle Mariners and the New York Yankees at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Wash., on March 30, 2026. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
"The comment about, ‘I’m not buying Starbucks, and neither should you,’ should have never happened. That should have never happened with the leader," Scott said on "The Gee and Ursula Show."
"I’m not saying that the mayor of Seattle is the reason that Starbucks is doing this," he continued. "I’m saying that there should have been a grown-up discussion and conversation."
Gee also compared Seattle’s treatment of businesses to the way other cities, such as Nashville and Austin.
"Sometimes when you are in a relationship, and some of you maybe have been in a relationship where you could not afford to move, and somebody just talked bad to you any kind of way, or you’re at a job where you have to constantly come in and you don’t feel appreciated, but you don’t have another job or other options, so you have to stick it out in that job. You have to be careful the way you talk to somebody that actually has an opportunity to leave," Gee said.
KIRO host Ursula Reutin added, "There are other cities that are waking up, or have woken up, and have said, ‘Hey, we’re going to compete for this business.’"
Mayor Wilson’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
SOCIALIST MAYOR’S BLUNT 1-WORD MESSAGE TO FLEEING MILLIONAIRES SPARKS OUTRAGE: ‘WE'RE DOOMED’
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson declared last year at a barista picket line, "I am not buying Starbucks, and you should not either.’" (David Ryder/Reuters)
Mayor Wilson also famously sparked a social media firestorm after she dismissed reports that millionaires are fleeing Washington state due to taxes and various far-left policies.
While speaking at a forum at Seattle University earlier this month, the new Democratic mayor said, "I think the claims that millionaires are going to leave our state are like super overblown."
"And the ones that leave, like, bye," she continued, waving her hand and laughing. Though the line drew laughs and applause from those in the auditorium, it did not go over as well online, as conservatives quickly blasted the new Seattle mayor.
"The Nashville office will be a complement to our global and North America headquarters in Seattle where we will maintain a large presence," Starbucks chief partner officer Sara Kelly previously told Fox News Digital.
WASHINGTON BUSINESS OWNERS FEAR SOCIALIST ‘MILLIONAIRES TAX’ IS DRIVING BUSINESSES OUT — AND THEY’RE NEXT
"Over the next five years, we expect to have 2,000 support jobs located in Nashville. The majority of our support teams continue to be based here in Seattle," Kelly added. "Nashville-based roles will include a combination of net new roles being created to support growth, some in-sourcing as we move some work from contract workers and professional service providers to full-time Starbucks partner roles, and in some cases, moving select teams from Seattle to Nashville as we did recently with our Sourcing teams."
Wilson shocked many political observers when she was elected Seattle's mayor last year, and many chalked up her victory to her ability to tap into a similar voting bloc that democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani used on his way to becoming New York City's next mayor.
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Fox News Digital’s Rachel del Guidice and Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.
Brian Flood is a media editor/reporter for FOX News Digital. Story tips can be sent to brian.flood@fox.com and on Twitter: @briansflood.
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