Eric Adams’ embrace of Trump unites Democrats against the New York City mayor – CNN
Source: CNN
Eric Adams has united Democrats in New York City. From across the boroughs and otherwise warring ideological factions, there is widespread agreement that the mayor has little to no chance of winning the Democratic primary in June — and that he shouldn’t even try.
Many of them don’t want to wait that long, calling for Adams to resign or be removed from office immediately, as the number of people quitting the United States attorney’s office in New York mounts and faith in the mayor’s ability to operate independently from President Donald Trump has vanished after the Justice Department called for prosecutors to dismiss the corruption case against Adams.
And it’s likely about to get worse for the mayor, as the Rev. Al Sharpton, a key powerbroker who said last week the city “clearly crossed the Rubicon,” is set to convene the city’s Black leadership to decide next steps, while former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is seemingly on the verge of launching his long-expected challenge.
Even in a city where frustration over the massive influx of migrants and quality-of-life issues runs high, contributing to last November’s best showing for a Republican in a presidential election in years, Adams is out on a limb unlike any other mayor in New York’s history.
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It’s an intense swirl: The interim United States attorney claimed in her resignation letter that Adams’ lawyers offered what amounted to a quid pro quo for cooperation in Trump’s immigration agenda, which a lawyer for Adams has denied. Adams himself chuckled along in a morning appearance on the president’s favorite TV channel, Fox News, as Trump border czar Tom Homan dangled a threat of being “up his butt” if the mayor didn’t follow through on his immigration commitments.
Adams struggled to pivot back to his core message: Immigration enforcement will be focused on dangerous criminals and purported gang members, and the shockwaves were so much that the mayor issued an unusual statement Friday insisting he “never offered — nor did anyone offer on my behalf — any trade of my authority as your mayor for an end to my case.”
“I cannot see a scenario where this mayor can continue to govern in this city, it’s just untenable,” New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who is first in the line of succession, told CNN.
Williams, who is not a close ally of Adams, said he was being careful with his words, weighing the seriousness and “painful situation” of calling for the removal or resignation of the duly elected mayor of America’s biggest city and the second Black man to hold the office.
US Rep. Ritchie Torres, who represents the Bronx, told CNN the situation is akin to “a Vichy Democrat allowing one of the bluest cities in America to be occupied by a far-right administration,” saying Adams has been rendered ineffectual to the point of being “a zombie mayor.”
Former Gov. David Paterson, an Adams friend who endorsed him four years ago, told CNN that he just saw the mayor on Thursday, but said as conflicted as he feels, Democratic voters in the city like himself “would certainly not be as comfortable as they were in 2021 when they voted for him.”
A united front against Adams was on display outside of City Hall on a frigid Friday morning as a coalition of advocacy organizations, lawmakers and party leaders gathered to call for his resignation or for Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul to use her powers to remove Adams from office.
Ana Maria Archila, co-director of the Working Families Party, told CNN the group’s concerns that Adams would use his legal trouble to negotiate against the interest of New Yorkers had materialized.
“I think the tide has turned so much that the people’s ability to trust his sound decision making has almost completely eroded,” Archila said.
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With the primary only four months away, the mayor’s opponents have seized on the opportunity created by Adams’ starring role in Trump’s shake-up of the Department of Justice.
Opponents of the mayor say the Justice Department memo to dismiss the charges against Adams, his move to allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement back on Rikers Island and his willingness to assign NYPD officers to help on federal task forces focused on immigration action are all signs he will ignore city law as long as it benefits him and pleases Trump.
State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, who is running against Adams, told CNN the mayor’s actions allow Trump to “make an example out of New York City,” and show that the biggest city in the cou
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