Amazon founder Jeff Bezos went head-to-head with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday, talking about the city's record $43 billion education budget and its ‘tax-the-rich’ agenda during a sit-down interview on CNBC's Squawk Box.The billionaire, who has a net worth of $269 billion according to Forbes, did not hold back talking about the city's mismanaged school system. Mamdani fired back the same day on social media and the exchange quickly turned into one of the most heated political flashpoints of the week.Jeff Bezos took aim at NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani over the city's record school spending. (Bloomberg)Bezos slams NYC school spending; Mamdani's replyBezos wasted no time going after the city's ballooning education budget. New York City currently spends a whopping $44,000 per pupil which is roughly 30 percent more than other major US cities despite falling enrollment and poor test scores, per the New York Post. The Bezos Family Foundation recently pledged $150 million to early childhood education in the city and Bezos made clear he believes the problem is not a lack of money, it is how that money is being spent."If we ran Amazon the way New York City runs their school system, your packages would take six weeks to arrive," Bezos told CNBC. “We'd have to charge you a $100 delivery fee. And then when the package did finally arrive, it'd have the wrong item in it anyway.”He argued that the billions being poured into the school system are not reaching the people who need it most, the teachers themselves. "None of this money is getting to the teachers, I promise you," Bezos said, as per the New York Post. "If you're charging $44,000 per student, how much of that money do you think is trickling down to teachers? Not much."Mamdani was quick to clap back. "I know a few teachers in Queens who would beg to differ," the mayor wrote on X on Wednesday afternoon.Also Read: Marco Rubio vs JD Vance in 2028? Trump’s next MAGA heir battle may already be underwayBezos rejects Mamdani’s billionaire tax pushBezos also pushed back on Mamdani's broader agenda to tax wealthy New Yorkers. While he said the mayor's proposed tax on luxury second homes worth more than $5 million was "a fine thing for New York to do," he firmly rejected the idea that taxing billionaires more would fix the city's deeper problems, per Fox Business."You could double the taxes I pay, and it's not going to help that teacher in Queens. I promise you. If people want me to pay more billions, then let's have that debate. But don't pretend that that's going to solve the problem," Bezos said on CNBC.He also defended Citadel CEO Ken Griffin, who was called out by Mamdani in a recent social media video. "Ken Griffin isn't a villain. He hasn't hurt anybody; he's not hurting New York. In fact, quite the opposite," Bezos said, as per Fox Business. He added, “What we don't do, because it doesn't work, is just point fingers and blame people. It might feel good for 10 seconds, but it doesn't accomplish anything.”Also Read: Aimee Bock: 5 things to know about the woman behind the $250M Feeding Our Future fraudBezos calls for zero income taxes on lower-earning AmericansBezos also made a broader argument about the US tax system, saying the bottom half of earners who contribute just 3 percent of federal tax revenue should pay nothing at all, according to Fox Business. "When people are starting out and they're struggling, stop taxing them. We don't need it. We live in the wealthiest country in the world," he told CNBC. “We shouldn't be asking this nurse in Queens to send money to Washington. They should be sending her an apology.”Reflecting on his own family's humble beginnings, Bezos added, “Maybe one of their kids will be the next Steve Jobs. But we can give them a better chance by eliminating their tax bill. And I don't want to reduce it, I want to eliminate it.”