Can Mayor Adams manage a crisis?

Plus: City Council staffers rally for 'living wages' [FORWARD TO A FRIEND]( [VIEW IN BROWSER]( [DONATE]( [WNYC Politics Brief] Can Mayor Adams manage a crisis? Migrant arrivals pose a major test. [By Elizabeth Kim]( [a close-up of Eric Adams]( Derek French/Shutterstock Mayor Eric Adams has been embroiled in a humanitarian crisis for over a year, with thousands of migrants continuing to arrive in New York City each week. But when he addressed the television cameras last week, he drew on his trademark swagger. "You know what I say to New Yorkers?" he told Fox 5. "Thank God I'm the mayor right now as we manage these difficult crises, because it's something I had to do throughout my professional career as an adult." For more than a year, the mayor has sought to portray the task of caring for tens of thousands of newly arrived migrants as an untenable and expensive burden that demands federal intervention. But his efforts to secure state and federal assistance have been mixed. The city received $1 billion in migrant care funding from the state budget with the help of Gov. Kathy Hochul, a close political ally. But [his strategy of criticizing President Joe Biden]( as he seeks re-election has angered White House officials, and could ultimately backfire. On the local level, criticism of the mayor's response peaked last week with the rollout of a plan to use public school gyms as migrant shelters, which was seemingly [scrapped]( after protests broke out. Public Advocate Jumaane Williams expressed sympathy for the magnitude of the challenge Adams is facing, but he cited the mayor's failure to communicate with community members as one of his critical shortfallings. "There are times where things are happening and people are saying we didn't know, we didn't get a heads up," Williams said. "That has been something that's been heard throughout the administration, even before the major crisis." For progressives, the mayor’s management of the migrant crisis speaks to larger issues about his policy priorities and governing style. They have cited the expansion of policing in the subways, cuts to libraries and other safety net services, and the scaling back and [administrative problems]( surrounding universal pre-K. "We have a mayor now who's out until 2 a.m. and is kind of boasting about his ‘at the club’ cred," said Zara Nasir, the executive director of the People’s Plan, a grassroots advocacy group. "And I think what people potentially feel is missing is this kind of very important combination of vision and governance." Left-leaning Democrats say they're most disturbed by Adams’ rhetoric around new arrivals, declaring last month that the city was being "[destroyed]( by the migrant crisis. Some of the mayor’s defenders say the public needs to temper expectations that he could single-handedly solve the issue. "The mayor doesn't have a magic wand," said Kathryn Wylde, the president of the Partnership for New York City, a business advocacy group. And Adams himself has fired back at critics, portraying them as complainers who have neither offered to help the city nor provided any alternative solutions. "Did you go to Washington to get us more money?" he said last week. "What have you done for the migrants and where would you like for me to house them?" [Read more about Mayor Adams' handling of the migrant crisis here.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 🗳️ --------------------------------------------------------------- More political headlines: [the exterior of City Hall on a sunny day]( [City Council will hear public testimony on what to do with near $107B budget]( The hearing, scheduled for Wednesday morning, will be the only time the public can weigh in on the executive budget as it goes through a round of Council hearings. [four City Council staffers holding their fists up in a call for better pay]( [City Council staffers to demand a 'living wage']( Unionized City Council staffers, who say 45% of aides currently earn less than $55,000 a year, are planning to rally on Wednesday to call for pay raises. [a gas station in Manhattan]( [Bill to make Big Oil pay $3 billion a year for NY's climate costs gains support]( New legislation in Albany would shift the cost for climate change mitigation efforts, such as upgrading stormwater and sewage systems and improving grid stability, away from taxpayers and onto oil companies. [a snowy Buffalo Bills game]( [Gov. Hochul, husband took in Bills playoff game from NY's suite]( The playoff game in January marked the first time any governor sat in the state’s suite, which is meant to promote economic development opportunities but has been criticized as a perk ripe for abuse. --------------------------------------------------------------- 🗳️ --------------------------------------------------------------- [the logo for the More Perfect podcast] [Clarence X]( For more than 30 years on the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Clarence Thomas seems to have been on a mission — to take away rights that benefit Black people. As a young man, though, Thomas listened to records of Malcolm X speeches on a loop and strongly identified with the tenets of Black Nationalism. To kick off the new season of More Perfect, we attempt to answer: What does Clarence Thomas think Clarence Thomas is doing? [LISTEN]( Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. 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