YES Policies of Prosperity Politics Why Now?

POLITICS, POLICY, & PROSPERITY

Why Politics? Why YES Yacht Executive Solutions? Why Now?

Some may initially find it unusual for a provider of tax, economic, and wealth services to the affluent and those committed to the boating/yachting lifestyle to include politics in their offerings.

But we believe that upon closer contemplation, and considering how much politics in America has changed and recent trends, we suspect most would agree we would be remiss not to - especially now that the affluent and their boating lifestyle are being increasingly demonized and targeted by forces on the left.

And even more so when we are uniquely able to do something about it. Starting with Tax Wise Political Giving.

More Boaters Than Voters

To put things in proper perspective,

77,303,568, the number of votes for President Trump in 2024
75,019,230, the number of votes for Kamala Harris in 2024
85,000,000 Americans go boating every year,
11 million registered U. S boats,
61 percent of boaters have a household income of $100,000 or less.
95 percent of U S boats less than 26 feet in length and can be trailered by a vehicle to local waterways.

In the 2020 presidential election, Joe Biden won the presidency with a combined margin coming down to a just 42,918 people across three specific states (out of nearly 160 million total ballots cast). These three states, their margins, and their significance in determining the outcome:

Georgia: Biden won by 11,779 votes (0.24% margin).
Arizona: Biden won by 10,457 votes (0.31% margin).
Wisconsin: Biden won by 20,682 votes (0.63% margin)

A review of boat ownership data and political data reveals several fascinating trends.

In 2020, Trump reportedly lost 4 out of 5 of the top boating states. But that is a bit deceiving because the states with the largest number of boats are logically on the liberal coasts, like California, and those states with the highest per capita boat ownership include Wisconsin. In fact, there is a surprising correlation between boat ownership and what are commonly referred to as the swing states that Trump won in 2024.

The point is that time on the water is a lifestyle that spans a diverse cross-section of the American electorate. More boaters than voters for either Democrats or Republicans. As such, boat ownership includes the middle class as well as the affluent. There are no greater environmentalists or those more sensitive and responsive to increasing costs and taxes.

Politics determines policy, which can largely determine prosperity.

Consider just how much politics has changed recently and what it could mean for the future.

For example, consider the politics and policies of a lifelong yachtsman and one of the most admired Democrats, the iconic President John F Kennedy, to what the current Democrats and their cohorts propose. President Kennedy could not even be a Democrat now.

First, Kennedy was wealthy- one of the oligarch billionaire class that the current Democrats now target. A billionaire, he is estimated to be the wealthiest President, second only to President Trump.

president-vacations-at-hammersmith-farm-president-kennedy-at-the-wheel-of-the-4e8a11.jpg

He was a lifelong boater, practicing Catholic, staunchly anti-socialist, anti-communist, pro-Israel, and a proponent of lower taxes, especially for the wealthier, of whom the Democrats now complain as not paying their fair share of taxes.

Perhaps it was his love of the boating lifestyle that prompted him to quote in 1963 that a rising tide lifts all boats.

In 1963, he proposed an across-the-board income tax cut of between 20-25% for all - including the rich and corporations.

His proposal to cut personal income taxes from 20-91% to 14-65% and the corporate tax rate from 52% to 47% was signed into law by his successor, Democratic President Lyndon Johnson.

Even though the United States ' federal income taxes are highly progressive, it's still not enough for the current crop of Democrats. The top 1 percent of earners (making roughly $660,000+) account for 20.6% of total income and pay 38.4% of all income taxes; the top 10% ( income of $178,000) pay 72% of all taxes, the top 50% ( with incomes of only ($50,000) pay 96.7%, while the bottom half of taxpayers earn 12.3% of the income and pay 3.3% of the total tax burden.

Money & Politics

"Money is the mother's milk of politics" is attributed to Jesse M. Unruh, a California campaign manager for John F. Kennedy in 1960 and a close Kennedy associate throughout his presidency.

A powerful American politician and former Speaker of the California State Assembly, he used the quote in the 1960s to describe how campaign contributions and funding are essential for political campaigns and power.

While political donors are overwhelmingly concentrated in the highest income brackets, with the top 1% to 1.5% of the population funding the vast majority of elections, the Democrats and Republicans, and their cohorts, are usually pretty evenly matched when the totals are tallied.

Although they do tend to raise money from different groups.

While grassroots, small-dollar donors ($200 or less) make up the bulk of unique contributors by volume, large-dollar contributors and mega-donors earning over $100,000 annually provide roughly 75% to 80% of total political funds.

The Financial Disparity

Small-Dollar vs. Mega-Donors: Only about 1% of the U.S. population donates more than $200 per election cycle, yet these itemized contributions account for over three-quarters of all campaign funding.
Ultra-Wealthy Concentration: Mega-donors (giving $100,000+) heavily dominate "Super PAC" and "dark money" groups. Research shows that a mere dozen ultra-wealthy couples and their spouses can account for up to 25% of the money raised in top-earning zip codes.
Self-Funders: Wealthy business magnates and billionaires increasingly self-fund or pour hundreds of millions of dollars into specific candidate-aligned Super PACs

Boat Owners As LikelyTargets

While many boat owners are the very people that many political movements and campaigns rely upon for funding, they are nevertheless the primary targets of the new Democratic Party and their cohorts - the Democratic Socialists.

Tax the Rich is just the beginning.

Approximately 38% to 49% of Americans—primarily young adults, Democrats, and liberal voters—express favorable views toward socialism.

Communism is less popular, drawing support from only about 5% to 38% of Gen Z, depending on the specific demographic and poll.

The demographics and voting groups supporting these ideologies vary significantly:

Age: Support for both socialism and communism is heavily driven by Gen Z (ages 18–29) and Millennials. Recent national surveys show that nearly half of Gen Z (up to 49%) view socialism favorably, and this younger cohort is the only age group with a more favorable than unfavorable view of communism (about 38% favorable). In contrast, support drops sharply among older generations, with only 5% of Baby Boomers and seniors expressing favorable views of communism.
Political Affiliation: Socialist favorability is highly concentrated in the Democratic Party. Roughly two-thirds (66%) of Democrats view socialism favorably, compared to just 10% to 14% of Republicans. Among Democrats, liberal voters are the most receptive, with 52% indicating they like politicians who identify as democratic socialists, whereas conservative and moderate Democrats are more skeptical.
Economic Sentiment: Favorability toward socialism is largely a response to dissatisfaction with the free market. Many supporters feel that the capitalist economic system is "rigged" or works against them. For a large portion of this voting bloc, "socialism" signifies a desire for systemic reform—such as free childcare or universal healthcare—rather than the strict nationalization of industry.

Just Who Is "The Rich" & What's Their Fair Share?

It's one thing to say you want to tax the rich, and to make sure they pay their fair share.

But it's quite another to agree upon just who is the rich and what their fair share is.

The answers often depend on where you stand, literally.

Depending on where you live in the United States, middle income can range from about $39,000 to about $400,000, with the average being about $170,000.

But if you want to consider incomes and taxes on a global scale?

Global taxes are not easy to compare, as many countries have multiple taxing authorities, like cities, counties, states, and different types of taxes such as VATs. Nevertheless, the highest income tax rate is Finland at 57.65%, and some have no income taxes. It's certainly worth a look.

As for income, how would a $35,000 annual income compare to the rest of the world's 8 billion people? It is helpful to look at the global thresholds:

The Top 1% (99th Percentile): Historically, global rich calculators—such as those utilizing data from the World Bank and the World Inequality Database—place the entry point for the global 1% right around $32,000 to $34,000 annually. Earning $35,000 clears this hurdle, making you wealthier than roughly 98% to 99% of the planet.
The Top 10% (90th Percentile): An individual only needs to earn roughly $12,235 per year to enter the top 10% of global personal income.
The Global Median: The global median per-capita income sits at approximately $2,920 per year.

A $35,000 salary is nearly 12 times (1,200%) higher than what the average person on Earth lives on. It should be noted that many on the left are against national borders, so perhaps when considering taxing the rich to pay their fair share, to be consistent, they should use a global perspective.

Democrats vs The Democratic Socialists Of America

Please bear with us for a moment as we presume most of you reading this are not really familiar with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which is now fighting for control of the Democratic Party.

In fact, a visit to the DSA website would otherwise be laughable, if not for a recent series of high-profile election victories. The upsets of long-serving establishment Democrats feed the perception and add credibility to a takeover of the Democratic Party by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

Urban Power Bases: Following the ascendancy of Zohran Mamdani as New York City Mayor, Mamdani-endorsed DSA candidates completely swept several key NYC Democratic primaries.
Congressional Breakthroughs: In New York's 7th Congressional District, DSA-backed Claire Valdez won her primary to succeed retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez. In Colorado, Melat Kiros successfully ousted a 30-year incumbent in a House primary.
Coordinated Machine Tactics: The DSA has shifted from a loose activist group to a functional political machine. By building a formidable ground game of thousands of volunteers and partnering with Justice Democrats and the Sunrise Movement, they have built an alternative pipeline to traditional corporate campaign funding.

The DSA is effectively transforming the politics of America's major liberal cities, forcing the broader Democratic Party to address working-class anger and affordability.

As long as mainstream moderates and traditional progressives maintain control of the majority of the party's national infrastructure, a DSA takeover of the Democratic Party is anything but certain.

A more accurate way to think of it may be how much influence will the DSA have over the party and by what date?

2028 could be a lot different than 2026.

But It's Not Just Tax The Rich

Boaters don't just have to be concerned about future tax policies, but both the DSA and the Democratic Party are also proponents of the Green New Deal, climate catastrophe, and limiting fossil fuels.

It's really just a matter of degree.

Regardless, both want to limit fossil fuels, by edict or by making them excessively expensive. The designed end result of their policies will be to reduce unnecessary fossil fuels and especially those of the leisure luxury lifestyle of boating.

Why Politics, Why YES, Why Now

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." was a famous line in President John F. Kennedy's 1961 speech.

Historians note that it is actually a famous misattribution. People often credit it to the 18th-century philosopher Edmund Burke.

However, there is no record of Burke ever writing those exact words.

Rather, many cite John Stuart Mill as having actually written the earliest documented version of the idea behind the "good men do nothing" quote.

While President Kennedy and others popularized the modern phrasing, the 19th-century British philosopher gave a famous speech in 1867 where he stated the concept directly: "Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing."

Mill felt very strongly that being quiet makes a person just as responsible as the person doing the bad deed. We agree. In his famous book On Liberty, he wrote: "A person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in either case he is justly accountable to them for the injury."

To whom much is given, much is expected. Why are we now applying our resources to politics, policy, and prosperity? We can't sit by when we are in a unique position to help.