With 15 days left before the June 22 New York City Democratic Mayoral Primary, the front running candidates and their campaigns were in full swing today, with prime endorsements, TV appearances, and with increasing salvos of political attacks.
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams appeared on CNN’s New Day program today, attacking his progressive opponents for what he says is their stance to defund the police.
Adams also rallied with supporters including Queens Borough President Donovan Richards this afternoon in Diversity Plaza in Queens. The New American Democratic Club and Bangladeshi for Eric Adams endorsed Adams and held a community walk in Jackson Heights. Adams said he’s the honest candidate in the race. “You don’t win a race by singing to the choir,” he said.
Maya Wiley’s campaign was quick to criticize Adams’ CNN appearance in a statement this afternoon.
“This morning, on CNN New Day, Adams said of his policing plan: ‘It would look like what David Dinkins looked like.’ But what did Eric Adams say in the 1990’s when he was a Republican and Rudy Giuliani and others were running around bashing Dinkins? Eric Adams joined in, saying Dinkins was ‘soft on crime’.” Wiley’s spokesperson said “Eric Adams is trying to have it both ways… Democratic primary voters won’t forget about Eric Adams’ hypocrisy.”
Meanwhile, Wiley also received the endorsement of U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-Bronx, Westchester) and New York State Assemblymember Nathalia Fernandez (D-Bronx) during a rally at Co-Op City this morning.
These endorsements follow the weekend announcement of U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s support for Wiley’s campaign for mayor.
The rally came after Wiley’s appearance on this morning’s edition of Morning Joe on MSNBC.
Andrew Yang visited the Cross Bronx Expressway in Parkchester today alongside U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-Bronx). Yang rolled out a plan to expand Bronx green space and invest in communities disproportionately burdened by environmental racism. He says the plan would greatly improve health outcomes for Bronx residents impacted the most.
Of the Expressway and his plan, Yang said, “[the Expressway is an] egregious example of highways built without regard for existing communities, tearing apart neighborhoods. We have an opportunity to undo this historic injury by ‘capping’ the highway and making green spaces.”
Kathryn Garcia’s campaign released her list of the top 15 Absurd Agency Rules and Practices that she will abolish as Mayor. These rules include no newspapers at public pools and a rule requiring homeless shelter residents to prove they’re homeless.
“There’s nothing more progressive than making government work for everyone,” Garcia said. “When you need help from City government, too often an arcane City bureaucracy stands in your way.”
This follows Scott Stringer, New York City’s Comptroller and a fellow candidate for mayor, releasing a report detailing the choice of a vendor during Garcia’s tenure as Commissioner of the New York City Sanitation Department. It’s alleged that the Department awarded a $14 million food contract to a vendor with a questionable background during the COVID crisis.
“New York City is still grappling with the economic fallout of COVID-19, and we can’t afford to waste precious City dollars,” said Stringer. “The bottom line is that DSNY’s hasty award of a contract to a vendor with a recent criminal conviction and with no relevant experience undermined the effectiveness of the City’s food program at the expense of the most vulnerable – and that’s unacceptable. DSNY should start implementing our recommendations immediately, and I am again calling on the City to immediately restore City procurement rules to protect taxpayers from abuse by unscrupulous vendors and from costly mistakes.”
