Opinion

Silver: more pain, please

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, fresh from conspiring with Gov. Cuomo to raise state taxes on “the rich,” now proposes to do the same for high-earning city residents.

“People who can afford more . . . should pay more,” he huffed Wednesday.

Never mind that the top-earning 10% already pay 71% of city income taxes, as the Manhattan Institute’s E.J. McMahon noted on these pages last week.

Or how corrosive that philosophy is to investment in New York City — and to Gotham’s long-term fiscal stability.

We’re not kidding: “We did that [hiked taxes on top earners] in the state,” Silver said. “There’s no reason the city shouldn’t do the same thing.”

Does he think potential investors don’t notice that sort of talk?

And it’s not just Silver.

The speaker’s rendition of his golden oldie followed close on the heels of mayoral wannabe Bill de Blasio’s call last week to sock the $500,000-plus crowd.

Meanwhile, as we noted Monday, all of next year’s top five likely mayoral candidates have backed soak-the-rich tax hikes.

After our editorial, at least City Council Speaker Chris Quinn shifted gears; she now says she’s ditched her 2009 call to up taxes on $300,000-plus earners.

Ex-City Comptroller Bill Thompson, too, is backing away from his tax-hike plan.

Good for them.

But here’s a novel notion: Why not lower New York’s taxes — state and local?

We know. That’s just crazy talk — because lush public pensions must be funded and fringe benefits fattened and so on.

But lower takes would provide relief for New Yorkers and jolt the economy.

Just this week, New York ranked 50th (dead last) in the Tax Foundation’s Business Tax Climate Index, and the Cato Institute gave Gov. Cuomo a “D” for his “read-my-lips-I-won’t-do-it” income-tax hike.

Meanwhile, New York’s jobless rate in August was 9.1% — a full point higher than the national average.

A coincidence? Not at all.

Kudos to Quinn and Thompson for backing off a little on making matters worse.

Silver, of course, will always be Silver.