Mayor Adams declined Tuesday to supply his ideas on President Trump’s commerce wars, federal funding cuts or the potential impression on New Yorkers amid criticism that the federal government’s transfer to dismiss his legal indictment has left him overly beholden to the Trump administration.
Adams has stated he is not going to publicly disparage Trump and as a substitute carry issues to the president straight, though at his weekly press briefing Tuesday he stated that he hadn’t achieved so relating to the financial points which have left New Yorkers anxiously questioning about the whole lot from their electrical payments to 401-Ok plans.
The mayor additionally declined to supply an opinion on ICE’s arrest and detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia grad pupil focused due to his involvement in pro-Palestinian protests. Khalil’s arrest has sparked outrage and protests throughout town.
“No, I haven’t had those conversations with him about these,” Adams stated on Monday when requested whether or not he had spoken with Trump on the financial points.
“Anything that affects New Yorkers concerns me,” Adams stated in response to a query about whether or not he was involved in regards to the tariffs on the press convention Monday.
However, he continued, “That’s the role of the federal government. I don’t control that, and I think that the federal government will just make the determination on what, how that plays out.”
Adams is dealing with allegations that he’s been compromised after the Justice Division moved to drop his federal corruption indictment in February on the premise that it held the mayor again from helping with a few of Trump’s coverage targets, significantly immigration. The division proposed the case be dismissed with out prejudice, which means it might be reinstated.
In a submitting final week, an unbiased lawyer appointed by the choose in Adams’ case wrote that to dismiss his case with out prejudice — in order that it might be introduced again at any level — left a “sword of Damocles” hanging over Adams.
The choose within the case is at present weighing a choice.
The mayor has each denied the fees within the indictment and that there was any quid professional quo between him and the president.
When requested Tuesday if his response to Khalil’s arrest was additional fueling issues he’s overly beholden to Trump, Adams accused his critics of being “unwilling” to battle for New Yorkers, saying they didn’t again him up when town was coping with the migrant disaster, which he blames on the Biden administration.
“Listen, I got opinions about a lot of things, but my opinion cannot govern the public safety of the city,” the mayor stated, including that the choice to deport is as much as the federal authorities and that town doesn’t cooperate with ICE on civil enforcement efforts.
The mayor has additionally confronted backlash for not talking out on different points involving the Trump administration, together with controversial govt orders, and has advised different metropolis officers to not communicate out in opposition to Trump themselves on social media.
Together with the remainder of the nation, New York is dealing with financial uncertainty beneath the Trump administration on a number of fronts.
After the president escalated a commerce warfare in opposition to Canada this week, doubling down on tariffs, the inventory market sank. The province of Ontario imposed a 25% electrical energy surcharge on New York and two different states following related tariffs from Trump on merchandise imported from Canada on Monday. It’s unclear how a lot New York Metropolis can be impacted by Canada’s transfer or the opposite tariffs.
The surcharge was suspended Tuesday, permitting the battle to chill off a bit. Trump backed down on a risk to farther enhance the Canadian tariffs.
Price range consultants have additionally flagged potential federal funding cuts that might slash Medicaid, SNAP and immigration funding.
“Anytime you look to cut anything, there’s an advocacy group who wants to fight against it,” Adams stated at his press briefing.
Initially Printed: March 11, 2025 at 6:09 PM EDT
