(The Center Square) — Facing federal indictments and a tough reelection bid, New York City Mayor Eric Adams focused on the positive in his annual State of the City address on Thursday.
During a live-televised speech from the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem, the Democrat touted a decline in murders and shootings, a crackdown on illegal cannabis shops and seizures of unregistered guns and ‘ghost’ vehicles to argue that his administration’s tough on crime policies are making the Big Apple a safer place for residents and visitors.
“New York City is finally becoming a city of yes,” Adams said in his remarks. “The state of our city is strong. I always say, there are two types of Americans — those who live in New York, and those who wish they could.”
The mayor also plugged a $650 million plan aimed at reducing homelessness and getting mentally ill New Yorkers off the streets and out of subway stations. He reiterated a call for Gov. Kathy Hochul and state legislative leaders to expand the city’s authority to remove the mentally ill from public spaces.
“We can do this, New York City. But we need Albany’s help as well,” he said. “We have seen the tragic consequences when severe mental illness on our streets and subways goes unchecked.”
Adams’ remarks come as he battles multiple federal indictments in court and gears up for what promises to be a grueling reelection bid that is expected to draw several Democratic challengers, including former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
They also come amid heightened concerns about crime in New York City following a series of horrific incidents, including a deadly stabbing spree in Manhattan, the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Midtown, and a woman who was burned to death on the subway by an undocumented migrant.
The former NYPD captain was elected to lead the nation’s largest city in 2021, pledging to reduce crime and guide the city out of the COVID-19 pandemic. He is the second Black mayor of the nation’s most populous city.
But in September, Adams was indicted on federal charges of bribery, fraud and soliciting illegal foreign campaign donations stemming from an investigation spanning nearly a decade. He has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the charges, the first to be filed against a New York City mayor in history.
Federal prosecutors announced on Tuesday that they have uncovered other criminal activity by the embattled mayor in addition to charges outlined in the indictment.
Top Democrats have called on him to resign following the indictment, while recent polls have shown that most of the city’s voters want him to step down.