The mayor goes to Albany

Adams seeks support from state leaders on fighting crime [FORWARD TO A FRIEND]( [VIEW IN BROWSER]( [DONATE]( [WNYC Politics Brief] 'It's the same Albany': Mayor Eric Adams makes his case at the Capitol [By Jon Campbell]( [Eric Adams speaking with Carl Heastie and Andrea Stewart-Cousins in Albany] Jon Campbell Eric Adams said he hadn’t stepped foot in the state Capitol since 2013, when he wrapped up his seven-year stint in the Senate, representing central Brooklyn. But during his return visit to Albany on Monday – his first as mayor of New York City – Adams insisted he didn’t forget how things worked there. "It’s the same Albany," he told reporters at the Capitol’s ornate Million Dollar Staircase. "You go in and advocate on those things that are important. You navigate these halls. You walk these halls. That’s how you get stuff done." The mayor didn’t walk away with any legislative deals; that wasn’t the point of the meetings, he told reporters. But he sought to highlight what he viewed as the positive nature of the discussions, making the case for his legislative agenda in Albany even though a major piece – scaling back recent reforms to bail laws – has been opposed by top legislative Democrats. "We should do a better job making sure dangerous people are not on the street, just as we should do a good job of making sure weapons are not on the streets," said Adams, who wants to restore the ability of judges to keep a criminal defendant behind bars before trial if they have a history of violent felonies. To this point, state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, both Democrats, have held firm. They’ve argued that allowing judges to consider "dangerousness" would invite racial bias into the equation. On Monday, however, Adams and the legislative leaders stood shoulder-to-shoulder in a show of Democratic unity after they met for 30 minutes in private. "We know that we have to continue to look at how we can make the system better in the context of COVID, in the context of the proliferation of guns," Stewart-Cousins said when asked about the issue of crime. Adams also made a point of emphasizing that bail laws weren’t the only thing he discussed with lawmakers. Many other pieces of the mayor’s agenda – including an expansion of the city’s earned income tax credit – require Albany approval. "There are so many other issues," Adams said. "We're looking at our earned income tax credit, universal childcare, raising the limit on our borrowing. There's so many issues that we have to look at, that I have to navigate up here, and this is how it’s done." --------------------------------------------------------------- 🗳️ --------------------------------------------------------------- For Further Reading [Letitia James speaking outside at an event in February of 2021]( NO CHALLENGERS, FOR NOW [Why NY Attorney General Letitia James is racking up endorsements ahead of her uncontested primary]( There are rumors that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo will challenge James in the Democratic primary in June. [state sen. Diane Savino]( OUT OF THE RUNNING [NY's new district maps are pushing some candidates to quit]( Staten Island State Sen. Diane Savino, Huge "Vax Daddy" Ma, and other Democrats are dropping out or considering doing so because redistricting threw a wrench in their campaigns. [a sculpture by Kara Walker of a massive woman made of sugar]( THE RACIAL WEALTH GAP [The case for reparations in New York City]( New York once had the largest enslaved population of any American city after Charleston. Will city and state lawmakers move forward with proposals to pay reparations? [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaking to a reporter]( THREE YEARS ON THE JOB [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on day-to-day life in Washington]( "I ate shit when I was a waitress and a bartender, and I eat shit as a member of Congress," she told The New Yorker. "It’s called a job, you know?" --------------------------------------------------------------- 🗳️ --------------------------------------------------------------- [the logo for The Brian Lehrer politics podcast]( [How much do you think about crime?]( A Quinnipiac poll out last week found that a record 74 percent of New Yorkers think crime is "a very serious problem," despite a homicide rate that's far below what the city saw in the 1980s and 1990s. [LISTEN FOR FREE]( Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. Your contributions are our largest source of funding and pays for essential election coverage and more. [DONATE]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [WNYC]( [WQXR]( [NJPR]( [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 All rights reserved. [Terms of Use.]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your [preferences]( or [unsubscribe]( from this list