Former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says Mamdani "did the smart thing" by meeting with Trump

Key Concepts

• Political Spectacle and Distraction: Donald Trump's use of public events to divert attention from negative news.
• Mayor-Elect's Strategy: Bill de Blasio's assessment of Mayor-Elect Eric Adams' approach to engaging with Donald Trump.
• Progressive Policies and Communication: The importance of connecting policy benefits directly to people's lives, as articulated by Bill de Blasio.
• Addressing Hate and Anti-Semitism: Strategies for combating hate crimes and ensuring safety in New York City.
• Federal Funding and Political Leverage: The ongoing threat of federal funding cuts and the potential for legal and political challenges.

Analysis of the Encounter Between Mayor-Elect Adams and President Trump

Bill de Blasio, speaking from Tucson, Arizona, offers his perspective on the meeting between New York City Mayor-Elect Eric Adams and President Donald Trump. De Blasio views the encounter as a strategic move by Adams to engage with Trump, highlighting Adams' composure and ability to handle the interaction without being unnerved. He characterizes Trump's actions as a "master showman" tactic to create a spectacle and distract from issues like the Epstein files and economic concerns, noting Trump's praise for the number of cameras present. De Blasio believes Adams "did the smart thing" by initiating the meeting and that his "charm and self-possession came through." He describes Adams' handling of Trump's "fascist answer" as a "great moment" and concludes that it was a "good day for M. Donnie" as he "held his own." For Trump, de Blasio sees this as a sign of "grasping at straws."

Trump's Invocation of De Blasio's Mayoral Tenure

The transcript includes a soundbite from President Trump referencing Bill de Blasio's time as mayor: "We took a big setback with a mayor that we had, named Delasio. I thought it was a tremendous setback for the city. I think this mayor could do some things that are going to be really great."

De Blasio responds to this by stating that Trump has "talked incessantly about his feelings about my time as mayor." He counters by listing his administration's achievements: "PreK for all in New York City," "the most jobs ever in New York City's history," and having "brought down crime." De Blasio notes the irony that Mayor-Elect Adams has stated he wants to "emulate a lot of the things that I did as mayor." He predicts that Trump will find Adams to be a "resolute progressive" who will build upon de Blasio's policies, forcing Trump to "decide whether he wants to keep praising someone who's actually putting the lie in effect to a lot of Trump's philosophy."

De Blasio's Perspective on Adams and the Democratic Party's Future

De Blasio suggests that Adams could be a "real thorn in their side" for the Republican party by "getting the Democrats back to our roots." He believes Adams is focusing on "kitchen table issues," discussing "prices," "people's everyday lives," with "compassion and urgency." De Blasio asserts that if Democrats adopt this approach, they will "win the midterms, period," which would diminish Trump's presidency. He anticipates that Trump will have "trouble being quite as warm towards mom Donnie as M. Donnie succeeds."

The "Good Policy vs. Good Politics" Argument and Advice for Adams

De Blasio elaborates on his past statement that as mayor, he "often mistook good policy for good politics, a classic progressive error." He clarifies this was in the context of Joe Biden, whose "tremendous policies" addressed "realities of everyday Americans lives" but were not communicated effectively. De Blasio argues that Biden's messaging "went right over people's head" and felt "discordant with the pain and the challenges that they were dealing with." He emphasizes that "it's not enough to have great policies" and that the public is not focused on "abstract economic indicators" but on policies that "reaches their lives directly."

He uses "PreK for all" as an example, where people "felt the money back in their wallets because they got free child care." For Adams, de Blasio points to "fast and free buses" and "freezing the rent" as policies that will have a "huge impact on people's everyday lives." He criticulates the focus on abstract concepts like "democracy" when people are struggling to "pay the bills," a mistake he attributes to Biden and Harris. De Blasio concludes that Adams is "taking the Democratic party to school right now and showing us how to talk to people about the lives they're actually living."

Addressing Anti-Semitism and Hate in New York City

The transcript addresses the issue of anti-Semitism, which was a campaign concern for Mayor-Elect Adams. Adams is quoted stating: "I care very deeply about Jewish safety and I look forward to rooting out anti-mitism across the five burrows and protecting Jewish New Yorkers and every New Yorker who calls the city home."

De Blasio's advice on this matter is to be "very aggressive and very assertive in addressing all forms of hate." He stresses the importance of leadership in showing that hate will not be accepted and that the "mayoral voice matters immensely." This includes "educating people, including our young people, to try and turn them away from hate," but also "bluntly about prosecuting people who commit acts of violence and hate towards others because of who they are." De Blasio believes Adams, as a Muslim who has experienced hate, "feels a great affinity actually for the Jewish community" and understands the need to "aggressively and immediately address any incident that occurs."

The Substantive Cloud of Federal Funding

The final question concerns whether the "substantive cloud" of President Trump potentially withholding federal funds from New York City has been removed after the meeting. De Blasio states, "No, I don't." He acknowledges the meeting was "helpful" and "took the edge off," and that an "open line of communication" is good, but "it doesn't changed the reality." He asserts that "Donald Trump changes his mind constantly" and "is going to at any given moment go back to his bellose ways towards New York City."

De Blasio draws a parallel to his own experience when Trump "tried to cut off our security funding" due to sanctuary city status, but they "beat him in court." He predicts Adams will do the same: "If Trump makes a move on New York City funding, he'll go to court. He'll mobilize the people of our city. He'll fight back." De Blasio also believes that the midterms will result in Democrats controlling the House, which will "undercut every attempt by Trump to take away money from cities and states over politics." He concludes, "No, I don't think this ends it one bit. I think it's a fight that's coming and it's a fight mom Donniey's ready for."

Conclusion

Bill de Blasio views the meeting between Mayor-Elect Adams and President Trump as a strategic success for Adams, who demonstrated composure and held his own. He believes Adams' progressive approach, focused on tangible "kitchen table issues," will resonate with voters and potentially benefit Democrats in the midterms, while also posing a challenge to Trump's political narrative. De Blasio emphasizes the critical need for effective communication of policy benefits and a strong, assertive stance against hate crimes, particularly anti-Semitism. Despite the positive optics of the meeting, de Blasio remains skeptical that the threat of federal funding cuts to New York City has been permanently averted, anticipating continued political and legal battles.