AOC rallies in the ‘People’s Republic of Astoria’

Presented by NY Renews, a project of Tides Advocacy

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez gave a boost on Wednesday to a suite of progressive priorities in the state budget, joining a rally in her district she termed “the People’s Republic of Astoria,” due to the neighborhood’s propensity for electing socialists.

She plugged “good cause” eviction and the Build Public Renewables Act, a priority of climate activists. She also slammed efforts from Gov. Kathy Hochul and others to push what she called “unjust rollbacks” to the state’s bail laws.

“Progressive representation actually means something, it means commitments to our issues, commitments to the working class, commitments to a livable New York,” Ocasio-Cortez said at the event. She was joined by other lawmakers aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America, including state Sen. Kristen Gonzalez and Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani.

The “good cause” legislation would effectively restrict rent increases on market-rate apartments to 3 percent or 1.5 times the rate of inflation.

“That’s not too wild of a demand, is it?” Ocasio-Cortez said. “We have to push Gov. Hochul to make sure that she includes this in the budget.”

Both the Senate and Assembly included nods to the measure in their one-house budgets, but it’s fiercely opposed by the city’s real estate industry and Hochul declined to include it in her wide-ranging housing plan.

Ocasio-Cortez also voiced concerns the proposed tweaks to bail laws would complicate the city’s plan to close the troubled Rikers Island jail complex.

“The way that we shut down Rikers is not by exploding the population of people that are kept there,” she said.

The fate of Ocasio-Cortez’s priorities and others pushed by left-leaning lawmakers remain uncertain as budget negotiations drag on.

While Democratic lawmakers want to raise income taxes on millionaires, Hochul has so far opposed new taxes. Legislators have also balked at Hochul’s efforts to expand charter schools in the city, but the sides do appear close on a deal to give judges more discretion to set bail, and are also working toward a deal to require new housing in the suburbs, perhaps paired with added tenant protections.

IT’S THURSDAY: Got tips, suggestions or thoughts? Let us know ... By email: [email protected] or on Twitter: @annagronewold

WHERE’S KATHY? In Albany and Rensselaer County. In the morning she will make an announcement with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

WHERE’S ERIC? In New York City, appearing live on NY1’s “Mornings on 1,” on FOX5’s “Good Day New York,” on PIX11’s “PIX11 Morning News,” and calling in live to 1010 WINS’ “Morning Drive.” Then, the mayor will deliver remarks at a New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services’ government hiring hall, and he will after participate in the 2023 National Action Network Convention’s “The New Black Agenda in Urban America – Building Generational Wealth.” Later, mayor Adams will participate in the 2023 NAN Convention’s “Public Safety in Urban America” panel discussion and host a reception in honor of Garifuna Heritage.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Rats are tough but New Yorkers are tougher.” — Kathleen Corradi, New York City’s newly “anointed” rat czar.

WHAT CITY HALL IS READING

Adams lashes out at national Republicans for casting city as crime-ridden, by POLITICO’s Danielle Muoio Dunn: Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday voiced irritation with former President Donald Trump’s renewed presence in the city for various legal proceedings and national Republicans’ depiction of Manhattan as dangerous place that disregards victims’ rights.

“She Has One Job: Get Rid of the Rats,” by The New York Times’ Jeffery C. Mays: “The challenges facing Ms. Corradi, an educator and land use and sustainability expert with the city’s Education Department, are sure to be much more intense in her new role. But Mayor Eric Adams, who introduced Ms. Corradi on Wednesday in Harlem, described her as a ‘maestro’ who would successfully coordinate interagency efforts to address New York’s rat problem.”

“Home care workers target Adrienne Adams,” by City and State’s Jeff Coltin: “Supporters of home care workers threatened to bring the fight to New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams’ house at a rally outside City Hall Wednesday, escalating their workers rights campaign that has taken special aim at the leader of the council.”

“Eric Adams Is Finally Facing Reality on Work-From-Home Rules,” by Errol Louis in New York Magazine: “Like many other employers, City Hall seems to be getting the message that we’re in the midst of a broad transformation of the economy that can’t be held back or reversed by executive order. Not that Adams didn’t try.”

WHAT ALBANY'S READING

“NY public defenders rail against potential 11th-hour discovery reform rollbacks in budget,” by Daily News’ Denis Slattery: “The Legal Aid Society was among those on Wednesday calling on lawmakers in the Dem-led Legislature to resist changes to the discovery laws, which require prosecutors turn over evidence to defense lawyers in a timely manner.”

“New York’s state budget is late. That’s just fine with Gov. Hochul,” by WNYC’s Jon Campbell: “It’s a move that increases her leverage in negotiations, since state law prevents legislators — but not the governor — from collecting their paychecks while the budget is overdue. There are few practical implications of a budget that’s a couple days or weeks late, so long as lawmakers continue to pass extensions so state workers get paid and the public’s patience doesn’t wear thin.”

“Hochul: SNAP benefits to go further at farmers markets,” by Spectrum News’ Nick Reisman: “An expanded dollar-for-dollar match under the FreshConnect Fresh2You program will boost the buying power of SNAP recipients at farmers markets. The announcement comes as federal pandemic relief money that augmented the incomes of SNAP recipients has come to an end.”

#UpstateAmerica: The reviews are in for New York’s new Thruway rest stops. And they’re … not great.

TRUMP'S NEW YORK

The New York Young Republicans Club led a pro-Trump rally last week with Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene outside the lower Manhattan courthouse where the former president was arraigned in connection with an alleged hush-money scheme. Next week, the Manhattan-based group, which has ties to white nationalist and far-right European parties, will host the political director for Hungary’s autocratic prime minister Viktor Orbán. The prime minister’s aide Balázs Orbán (no relation) will discuss his book “The Hungarian Way of Strategy” at a location provided following an RSVP, according to a copy of the invitation obtained by POLITICO. The invite says the book “debunks misconceptions fostered by Western media about the nature and aims of Hungary’s government,” while the author “advocates for a Europe in which there is room to govern by principles rooted in national history and values instead of the currently hegemonic liberal consensus.” — Julia Marsh

AROUND NEW YORK

— Enjoying New York City’s heat wave? You might want to thank something called the “Bermuda High.”

— The city of Albany’s budget director was just granted a one-year waiver by the local residency board that allows him to live outside the city.

— Residents of a Bronx apartment building who have lived a decade without gas service have just about had it.

— A first-of-its-kind district school for students with dyslexia will open in New York City this fall. Meet its principals.

SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN


HAPPY BIRTHDAY: CNN’s Nathaniel Meyersohn … Will Davis of the OECD Washington Center … Edelman’s Sujata Mitra and Kate Meissner … NBC’s Justice Gilpin-Green … Bloomberg’s Jeannie Baumann … AP’s Ayanna Alexander … Deena Tauster of Rep. Andrew Garbarino’s (R-N.Y.) office … Kevin Warsh … Alex Lam … Morgan Hitzig … Marlo Paventi Dilts

MAKING MOVES — KKR’s Ken Mehlman has been named vice chair of the board of trustees of Franklin & Marshall College.

MEDIAWATCH — Dana Canedy is now managing editor of the Guardian U.S. edition. She previously was a publisher at Simon & Schuster and is a NYT alum. More from the NYT … Ryan Heath is now a global technology correspondent at Axios and co-author of Axios Login. He previously was the editorial director of POLITICO Live and the author of Brussels Playbook. … Christine Baratta is now director of news and editorial content at Global Situation Room. She previously was executive producer and managing editor for television and radio at Bloomberg.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Dominique Donahue, NBC News comms director, and Dan Donahue, head writer for “NBC Nightly News,” on Saturday welcomed James Donahue, who came in at 7 lbs, 2 oz and 20 inches.

Real Estate


“89 NYCHA Buildings Earned an A for Energy Efficiency — and Even Its Managers Didn’t Believe It,” by THE CITY’s Greg B. Smith: “After the City Council’s oversight and investigations committee pointed out the data on NYCHA’s website, THE CITY confronted the housing authority with an analysis of records kept by the Department of Buildings — the agency that actually determines the scores based on energy consumption information supplied by building owners. The analysis revealed an entirely different story: Just four of NYCHA’s 2,100 buildings had actually received passing grades.”

“The mayor of a rich New York suburb says wealthy communities ‘are losing their minds’ over Gov. Kathy Hochul’s plan to increase housing,” by Insider’s Eliza Relman: “New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wants to address her state’s severe housing shortage by building more housing. But many of the wealthiest suburban communities around New York City aren’t having it. Leaders and activists in towns and villages from Westchester to the Hamptons are denouncing Hochul’s plan to boost the housing supply in New York City and its suburbs by 3% over the next decade.”