I don't think that's special pleading exactly. They're not saying "people should only pay for what they use, except for all these things I want and they don't",

I don't think that's special pleading exactly. They're not saying "people should only pay for what they use, except for all these things I want and they don't", they're saying "people should be forced to pay for certain things, and those things should coincidentally be the ones I want". It's self-serving, but it's not an exception to a general principle.