This morning our region and the great world beyond woke up to reports of the indictment of Mayor Eric Adams on what is presumed to be corruption charges. This unprecedented development comes amidst the climax of the most consequential presidential election since 1864 when our nation was caught up in the Civil War.
Last night, just before the New York Times and New York Post broke the story, Mayor Adams issued a brief video message striking a defiant tone and linking his being charged on corruption charges with his criticism of the Biden administration’s failure to stem the tide of undocumented migrants coming across our southern border.
“I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became,” Mr. Adams proclaimed looking straight into the camera. “If I am charged, I am innocent and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
In taking this combative stance Adams is doing a municipal version of Trump‘s attack on the “deep state” and the U.S. Department of Justice that the former president asserts target him because he is standing up to the wealthy elites that see migrants as a cheap labor source and Democrats who see them as prospective voters who will dilute the political power of red-blooded Americans.
Gov. Greg Abbott’s move to weaponize the migrant crisis by making it New York City’s problem was a cynical but effective play to destabilize the politics of a deep blue city like New York City that was already limping out of the pandemic and it’s working to some degree thanks to the exiting systemic political corruption and the anemic state of our local democracy.
In essence Abbott’s strategy was a continuation of that insurrection that boiled over on Jan. 6 when a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol to disrupt the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 Electoral College victory. It’s as old as the Greek and Roman strategy of divide and conquer.
If you are worried that America’s demographics are trending to majority minority, blow up that convergence so that the white, now minority, can hold on to power. The British Empire builders knew the strategy well. It helps if the federal government has lost touch with the circumstance of its multi-racial struggling cohort.
Make no mistake, Mayor Adams will garner support from New Yorkers who are “informed” by Fox News and the New York Post that the migrants that were paroled into the U.S. legally present a clear and present danger to the financial well-being and even the life and limb of native New Yorkers.
On WBAI, the very left wing radio station in New York City where I am the interim general manager, we hear it from a lot of our African-American callers who are struggling to pay their rent. ‘Look at all the benefits these immigrants are getting, while tens of thousands of New Yorkers are living in. shelters! These people undercut our wages,” they will proclaim. This analysis easily jumps to ‘why are we spending hundreds of billions on these wars that never end while we don’t have health care.’
The insurrection never stopped and our courts and justice system failed to quell it. We have House Speaker Mike Johnson, himself high up in the presidential order of succession, presiding over a caucus that voted to not certify the 2020 election results AFTER the violent assault.
Of course, Johnson was the lead legislative architect of this coup attempt for which he and no other similarly minded member of the House has ever been prosecuted. Ironically, Johnson faces no opposition this November in his northwest Louisiana district. Democracy is already dead there evidently.
It was the late Rep. Bill Pascrell who in December, well before the Jan. 6 attack, wrote then Speaker Pelosi calling for the expulsion of the Republican House members who signed on to the lawsuit by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton challenging the 2020 election.
Yes, the Morning Joe crowd and beltway Democrats will say that New York City’s nativist voice backing Adams have taken an ill-informed unnuanced populist point of view. Yet, it reflects the perspective of enough of the electorate that Mayor Adams can see some daylight worth running towards. Their condescension born of their own ignorance of New York City’s reality will be fodder for the right wing.
It’s sad but true. There’s scarcity and poverty in New York City and they are right up against mind blowing wealth concentration. Oligarchs have penthouses they never visit and the working homeless sleep where they can.
Gov. Greg Abbott’s sending over 200,000 migrants northward played out while New York City was already limping out of the pandemic. This mass death event killed tens of thousands of New Yorkers including thousands of selfless civil servants, healthcare workers and essential workers who kept our world turning. Make no mistake, there were real implications of the White House declaring the pandemic over (mission accomplished) in 2023 and “unwinding Medicaid” throwing 26 million people off of their healthcare.
Even without the migrants, it was like a switch was thrown with New York City’s public hospital emergency rooms being overwhelmed and FDNY EMS response times going on average over ten minutes. The city’s welfare agencies were swamped with emergency cash assistance requests and food stamp applications as the municipal civil service was still reeling from the pandemic and a wave of early retirements.
Not renewing the expanded Child Tax Credit threw millions of children back into poverty many of them living in New York City. This is what tens of thosuands of migrant men, women and children were sent into wearing summer clothes into a northeast winter.
It was cruel, but we know that was the point and look at the dividends it has paid.
Even before the pandemic and all that’s followed since, democracy was on life support in New York City where Mayor Adams won an election where just 21 percent of the electorate bothered to turn out.
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In a recent article by Insider NJ, it was reported that Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, New Jersey has been making headlines for his outspoken criticism of what he refers to as ‘the deep state’ within the city’s municipal government. Drawing parallels to President Trump’s critiques of the federal government, Baraka has been vocal in his belief that there are entrenched interests within Newark’s bureaucracy that are hindering progress and accountability.
Baraka’s version of ‘the deep state’ in Newark is said to consist of a network of long-standing employees and officials who have become resistant to change and reform. According to Insider NJ, the mayor has accused these individuals of prioritizing their own interests over those of the city and its residents, leading to inefficiencies and corruption within the municipal government.
The article goes on to highlight some of the specific instances where Baraka has clashed with members of the alleged ‘deep state’. One such example is his decision to fire several high-ranking officials who he believed were obstructing his efforts to improve transparency and accountability in city government. This move was met with backlash from some within the establishment, but Baraka remained steadfast in his commitment to rooting out what he sees as systemic problems.
While Baraka’s critics have accused him of using inflammatory rhetoric and creating division within the city, supporters argue that his willingness to challenge the status quo is necessary for bringing about much-needed change. In a time when public trust in government institutions is at an all-time low, Baraka’s efforts to shine a light on potential corruption and inefficiency should be seen as a positive step towards rebuilding that trust.
Overall, Insider NJ’s report on Mayor Baraka’s municipal version of Trump’s critique of ‘the deep state’ sheds light on an important issue facing Newark and other cities across the country. Whether one agrees with Baraka’s methods or not, his willingness to confront entrenched interests and demand accountability should be seen as a necessary part of the democratic process. Only time will tell if his efforts will lead to meaningful reform within Newark’s municipal government.
