THOUGHTCRIME Ep. 101 — The New York City Communist Debate? MAGA vs. Mamdani? Medal of Freedom Reactions
Episode Stats
Length
3 hours and 32 minutes
Words per Minute
186.90028
Summary
Jack and Andrew are joined by special guest Andrew Colvin to preview the upcoming Thought Crime Thursday debate. Plus, the guys talk about the Super Bowl halftime performance, the latest in the Mondani debate, and much, much more!
Transcript
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The NSA specifically targets the communications of everyone.
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Hey everybody, we got Jack Posobiec and Andrew Colvin.
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And we are here live in studio for once for Thought Crime Thursday.
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But I actually love Thought Crime because now that I have to sort of play driver for the Charlie Kirk show,
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Well, tonight there's going to be a ton of Thought Crimes
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because what we're going to be doing tonight is the Mondani debate is coming up.
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And we all know how much Charlie was a huge fan of Mondaminomics and Mondamism.
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And he just was so enthralled with the idea that this race communist, cultural Marxist,
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So what we're going to do, you know, Andrew's got a flight.
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So we wanted to come on a little bit, have a chat with him, preview the debate.
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And, yes, I will make sure that Blake does not come on and interrupt.
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Unfortunately, we actually don't have Blake because Blake is on assignment.
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And Blake, so this was, like, Blake months ago was like,
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hey, you know, I got to go to Italy for, you know, family members taking the vows.
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So there's a chance that Blake might be joining a nunnery.
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Yeah, because this audience has completely failed to get him married up.
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Also, please send your Super Bowl halftime requests.
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I know a lot of people have been sending in emails all throughout the week.
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And we've seen some very, very interesting requests.
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But again, we're accepting those requests with arms wide open.
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And all I can say is hold me now because the news is coming.
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And, you know, I just heard the news today, as a matter of fact.
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No, I mean, it's just, you know, cultural relevance and, you know,
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incredibly popular acts with international renown.
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And, look, like all I'm saying is if you want the event to be taken higher,
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How deep down the hit list are we going to go here?
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We could go six feet from the edge if you want.
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Jack, I'm going to get you a playlist with some other acts on it.
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Tyler's traveling around the world trying to orchestrate our 2026 turning point action plan.
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But we also are going to talk about the Medal of Freedom ceremony.
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No, but we do also have a special guest joining us.
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You've got the hat on of the greatest football team in American history.
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You know, we're giving some other teams, you know, a chance here.
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Megan Kelly, by the way, was roasting me yesterday for that loss to the Giants.
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And then Andrew was roasting us because we, what, the three teams in one night?
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You guys had the clean sweep and the Dodgers won the series three to one.
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And now we're up two to nothing on the Brewers.
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And by the way, I want everybody to know, out of respect for Charlie, had the Cubs overcome
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the Brewers and faced off with the Dodgers, I would have, I would have, for Charlie, I would
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See, I might, I might actually be rooting for the Dodgers now because my dad used to always
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say that if you got beat, then you might as well say, well, we got beaten by the champs.
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So I'm, but I'm not, I'm not, I'm not sold on that yet, but no, you know, and Cliff, you
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know, you got to see the ceremony and, and actually, do you want to ask Cliff about it?
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I actually, this whole experience, Cliff, of the last month, and I, I was used to seeing
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I would, you know, we'd work on how we're going to approach the interviews and the debate.
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And, but it was still hard for me to calibrate because I was still so close to it.
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Like, you know, how famous Charlie was, how people were reacting to it.
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So I actually really think outside perspective, somebody that's, that was watching on TV is
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So to your, to your point, Jack, Cliff, what was it like watching it, you know, from afar?
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Yeah, well, obviously, you know, I'm focused on Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
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And this is the heat of the moment in terms of us, you know, diving in there.
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You know, what was fascinating to me, honestly, the, the thing that stands out is kind of how
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I just mean that, you know, you, you hear all the time from the media and from a lot of
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people on the left that Donald Trump is this evil human being and just, you know, completely
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just corrupt or whatever they say, all these, these buzzwords.
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And then seeing him interact with Erica, you know, to me, he kind of brings out the grandfather
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Just, just very delicate and somber and sweet and connects with her.
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And I just, I mean, that obviously, you know, I, I, I just love seeing that side of him,
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I mean, the guy took a bullet on the ear for us, but to see that side of him, I think
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just kind of brings out, it just makes him kind of a whole person to me.
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And then obviously, you know, with the ceremony, I think Erica's speech, I don't want to, you
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know, say it topped the memorial or it topped her speech from the studio.
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But I just think that, you know, it's, it's such a great message of her just talking about,
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you know, where are we going from here and her referencing the turning point chapters.
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I mean, that, you know, from afar, that struck me because she's caring about the people that
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Charlie would have cared about, which are, you know, not the people at the top, right?
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We're way at the bottom and the people that are closest to the voters, the people that are
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closest to changing hearts and minds are the door knockers or the activists or the students
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on campus and for her to reference that, that just really, to me, uh, talks about, you
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know, what is the future for turning point and what do things look like?
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Um, so I just thought the whole ceremony was fantastic.
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Um, a great tribute to Charlie Kirk and, uh, you know, it just reinforced, we got to do
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And, and Andrew, I know, so we were, you know, there in the Rose garden and I know there
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was that moment, it was kind of surreal and, and you turned to me and, and you, you took
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this picture that has now gone viral and you pointed out, it's like all of the legends of
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conservative media, the people that like we watched, even the people that we watched when
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we were younger, uh, were all standing together.
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And in, even in addition to the entire government being there, but this, this photo, it was,
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It was, so we had Bill O'Reilly, which he never comes to stuff.
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And I don't know if we got all of them in, you know, one picture, but we did, we got most,
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I think Hannity, uh, Jesse waters and Tucker Tucker, Laura Ingraham, Laura Ingraham.
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It was sort of like the past and present of the Fox, uh, lineup, which was noteworthy in
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the sense that, you know, I don't think I've ever seen them photographed together.
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I'm going to, I'll put it in the chat here when you think of all like the, you know,
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the ups and downs and the back and forth of, of the schedule and Owen Glenn Beck, Glenn
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I didn't get Glenn in that picture, but what, what happened was that it was basically Jesse,
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Bill, Tucker, and Laura all standing next to us in the back.
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Cause there's, you know, assigned seats and then there's, and then there's people standing
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and, and you, you'd be surprised the caliber of people that were standing, right?
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And then, you know, all of a sudden, Sean Hannity walks back, uh, I think to give a hug to
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And, uh, he turned around, we snapped the picture and it was quite the moment.
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But there was also, you know, there, Glenn Beck was, was, uh, around and then we had
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a picture, uh, with Blake, you, me, uh, Benny Johnson, the crew, and I guess that picture
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But, you know, there's something about the conservative media being there showing up and
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it speaks to the role Charlie played in that because Charlie was such a fan of Rush and
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Rush had also received the presidential medal of freedom.
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And so there was this, this interesting symmetry, this interesting parallel of like the generations
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of, you know, so Rush is the first, I, I used to think about this, like he was the pioneer
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of conservative media that wouldn't exist without him.
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I used to think about this all the time that what made Charlie, uh, very exceptional just
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in the media landscape was that he was a bridge of generations as well, even though he, you
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know, 31 years old, he had become very close with Rush.
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Rush, you know, was a seven figure donor to Turning Point.
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He believed in Charlie, but, you know, Charlie was also close with Sean Hannity and he was
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also close with Mark Levin and he was also close with Glenn Beck.
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And these, so these are the people that he grew up listening to and then he became close
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with, and they were all sort of excited to hand the baton to him and let him carry on
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the mission and expand the mission, grow the mission.
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And so Charlie was uniquely positioned that way.
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Like who else could bring together these people, uh, from Fox news that, you know, had, you
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know, interesting exit stories from the network.
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Uh, he's being so diplomatic, so diplomatic because he spends four days in DC and he turns
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Well, I'm trying to be diplomatic because anybody that was willing to make the time to go to the
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Rose Garden and honor Charlie deserves my respect and I'm going to be respectful.
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I mean, just so we're clear, I ended up on a stage with Bill O'Reilly later that, or last
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night and getting lectured about JFK sending in the National Guard in 1963.
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I was like, you know, I appreciate Bill that you might have a little bit more historical,
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historical, uh, uh, understanding about what happened in 1963, but I, I think maybe I
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have a little bit better understanding what happened in 2023, oh, snap, oh, snap, it's
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He brought people together that otherwise wouldn't be together.
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I mean, you, not just from a media standpoint, it was, it was also from a, you know who we
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No, but like the honor guard was like in between us.
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So it was, it was sort of, no, we should have grabbed her and we saw her later obviously.
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And she was great and she was a gracious, but it was, there was this military honor guard
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And so you didn't really want to cross that cause they were keeping the aisle clear.
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I don't know why they were keeping the aisle clear cause nobody walked down it, but yeah,
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you didn't, you didn't want to cross this military honor guard, but that, that would have
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been, uh, obviously it would have been, you could Photoshop it.
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If you're watching Photoshop that boneless, it's on you.
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So, Hey, let's play some clips from, Oh, go ahead.
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Let me just make one comment to back you guys up.
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You know, I used to be much more of a flamethrower back in the day.
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And it's funny thinking back cause Charlie was always the one, you know, who'd send me
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He'd be like, listen, you know, I know that you disagree with this person or I know that,
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you know, you think that they're the enemy at the moment, but we got to figure out a
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There's gotta be some coalition here, but he always talked about compromising, uh, without
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And I just always like to give Charlie credit for that because.
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There was something that he was very good at, uh, in a way that, that not a lot of people
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at his level understand kind of how to put those chess pieces together.
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Um, but I just want to back up what you guys said.
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I mean, who else can get all of these different media, all of these different big names, all
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And it's Charlie, the one that, that really, like I said, I mean, a lot of people, when
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they get to that sort of position or that height of influence, uh, they're, they're kind
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And I think Charlie was just always trying to build a coalition.
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He, he didn't believe in purity tests necessarily.
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I mean, you could, you could cross a line and he would, he would, um, he would give you a
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name check and up against the glass, uh, use a hockey expression.
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But most of the time he was willing to work this stuff out in private and he won a lot
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of, uh, trust and admiration from people that are used to getting betrayed by people in public.
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Basically, you think you have a friendship with somebody and then all of a sudden you find
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out that, uh, you're, you're, you're getting put on blast in, in the media or whatever.
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Jack, do you, uh, have one that, I mean, I can just start here.
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And remember that while freedom is inherited in this country, each of us must be intentional
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God began a mighty work through my husband and I intend to see it through.
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It's in all the students with turning point USA.
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Speaking directly to the chapters was, I think just a brilliant stroke because it goes to
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show you that there's so many students out there and, and more students now.
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And I've been, I've been working with this, um, chapter at Rutgers.
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They're, you know, under attack and there's other people who are, you know, getting, you
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know, getting in the limelight now and, and the pressure's on, right?
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The pressure's on turning point, but then you also see the people who are stepping up
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So you look at the tour, the thousands upon thousands of kids that are coming out to these
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So JD Vance came on the show yesterday, uh, on the Charlie Kirk show from the white house,
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And he, we, he announced, well, I sort of announced, but then he filled in the gaps that he and Erica
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are going to be hitting up old miss Oxford, Mississippi on October 29th.
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Uh, and I think her only tour stop this time, but we also announced that Benny Johnson first
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And then we've got, uh, Eric Trump, Benny Johnson, Laura Trump, and coach Tuberville
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So on November 5th, the one year anniversary of, uh, really Cliff Maloney's call heard
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The Pennsylvania call, the Pennsylvania call, which was so, it was so appropriate.
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I remember it by the way, like we were, we were all still saying it in the chat and they
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were like, everyone's like Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania.
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Don't say anything, something bad, something to pull it back.
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And we had the tasty cakes, which, which I actually believe it or not.
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And I don't find them that delicious, but I love that they mean something to you.
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It is the greatest, the greatest cake out of tasty, out of Philadelphia.
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I don't think there's any actual pumpkin anywhere near these things.
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When you can't pronounce most of the ingredients.
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All you need to know is Tasty Baking Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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But these are the ones we brought out right when, because I knew Pennsylvania would be
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And so I pull out the tasty cakes, which I had brought all the way after infiltrating
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Fox News decides Donald Trump is president of the United States.
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Remember where you were when you realized that the Uniparty and all of these, you know,
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just the establishment, you said it's time to actually participate.
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And if anyone deserves to get tears in his eyes, it's Charlie.
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I think Eriko has chopped some onions or something in the break room.
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No one has worked harder than Charlie for this.
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We got to hear some words here from you, Charlie.
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We're, you know, the debate's coming up in a couple of minutes.
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I mean, I do want to, I just, I want to play, well, shoot, it's too long of a clip.
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So I was actually, I got to be on Fox News this morning talking about just, we were, the
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reason November 5th came up is because we have the stop with Eric Trump and Laura Trump
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and Benny and Coach Tuberville, which is actually was my original pitch to the vice president's
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He came on the one year anniversary and they really tried to just couldn't make it work
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I can't even imagine that kind of much of a logistics and all the security.
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I mean, it's anyways, the reason I wanted to play this Fox News clip, well, maybe it's
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I'm just giving kudos and a hat tip to JD Vance.
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And he did come on the, the, the Charlie Kirk show to, to make this announcement.
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And I was just astounded by the numbers of people who have reached out.
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I understand there's like 350,000 and growing young people who have said, we'd like to be
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The Charlie Kirk show continues as do the events.
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And vice president Vance was on your show yesterday talking about how he's going to
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do an event and he's going to take some questions.
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I actually want to, I want to hear from these kids.
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He would answer tough questions from the left and from the right.
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And a part of keeping Charlie's memory alive is keeping the mission alive and nobody can
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But if we all sort of take little pieces, we can do as much as we can to ensure that
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Charlie's mission continues to survive long after he's gone.
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I feel like that's going to be must watch TV, streaming, whatever we're calling it now.
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And I just want to give a huge shout out and hat tip to the vice president.
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You know, people, I don't know how people imagine this working, but he and Usha have
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been so just generous and they have been the ones offering to help.
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They have been the ones saying, hey, we want to make sure that Charlie's legacy lives on.
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And I just love that the vice president wants to honor Charlie by emulating Charlie at these
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You know, yes, he'll give a few minutes of remarks, but he wants to he wants to interact
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And people need to understand that part of what made Charlie so amazing is that, yeah, he
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And this is going to give the vice president opportunity to do just that.
00:23:00.800
So in minutes, the House Speaker, Mike Johnson, will give us an update.
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Yeah, I just I love that the vice president wants to honor Charlie by doing what Charlie
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He's going to give a few minutes of remarks, but then he's going to spend the most of his
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time taking questions and interacting with Charlie always said that he always told me
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the very first time that I went never did one of the campus stops by myself, even without
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So Charlie's advice was and I've used it for almost every single event that I could since
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He says, if they give you an hour, do five, ten minutes of remarks and the rest questions.
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Well, Charlie would plan five to ten minutes and usually go a little bit longer.
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And then and he was always I was like, well, why do you do that?
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And he goes, well, because the questions go viral, Jack.
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It's funny because one of the guys, Nick Frey, I don't know if you guys know Nick out of
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Yeah, he's so funny because like with him, his social media has kind of taken off.
00:24:10.080
And it's funny because I asked him once and he says, listen, he says the four speeches
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people love, he says, but the speeches aren't what really take off.
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And obviously, Charlie with the prove me wrongs, you know, understood that it's capturing not
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just stupid questions, but, you know, people actually asking intellectual questions and
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getting a raw, real time response from Charlie.
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And that's why these turning point events, you know, I think J.D.'s correct and right to
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say, hey, let me actually take questions rather than give some pontificating speech.
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But I think that the real thing people are looking for, we saw this in 2024, the whole
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Trump going on Theo Vaughn, Trump going on, you know, Rogan, the real long conversations
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where you actually get responses that people have to think about and they can judge your
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temperament and what you're actually, you know, where you're coming from that position
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I think that's why these prove me wrongs are great.
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And I love that some of these speakers are taking that angle.
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And it's that real time, you know, sort of like got to think on your feet aspect.
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I know, let's do about five more minutes and then I know, because I know the debate is
00:25:29.360
So Mamdani is currently leading in the polls, but Cuomo is right behind him.
00:25:33.740
So the latest poll that I've seen out of Quinnipiac, it's Mamdani, 46, Cuomo, 33, Curtis Sliwa
00:25:41.700
at Sliwa, in Polish you'd say Sliwa, but we could say Sliwa at 15.
00:25:51.320
Well, if you add up Sliwa and Cuomo, that puts you at what, 48?
00:26:05.060
And, you know, we're seeing, and by the way, we're seeing very similar, I got to throw it
00:26:08.360
out, the New Jersey governor's race where, you know, we've been doing a ton of work.
00:26:12.960
By the way, Turning Point Action is holding an event this weekend with Chittarelli, Jack Chittarelli,
00:26:18.900
up in northern New Jersey and up in Bergen County, and he's right behind her in the polls
00:26:26.360
if you look at the head-to-head, but the enthusiasm gap is huge.
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There is a 13-point enthusiasm gap, Chittarelli up 55, Cheryl 42.
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And I think we actually have some video of Charlie talking about Mamdani, Zoram Mamdani,
00:26:53.240
Now, understand that in the modern world, authenticity is considered to be the most important thing
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Now, authenticity, if you're pointing towards something good and virtuous, is beautiful.
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You're authentically trying to be the best version of yourself, to be honest.
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If you're pointing towards a moral and transcendent ideal.
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But Zoram Mamdani is not authentically trying to point New York or aim towards a better city.
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And authenticity without virtue is just narcissism in disguise.
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Authenticity without virtue is just narcissism in disguise.
00:27:50.660
And in fact, that he's not just talking about politics there.
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And there were so many times where Charlie would do that.
00:27:59.460
And he would, you know, you'd start with one issue or some political issue or political
00:28:04.540
And he would unpack it all the way down to its bones.
00:28:09.820
She made a really important distinction between essentially what the founders would call licentiousness,
00:28:15.400
which is freedom without rules, freedom without boundaries, versus liberty.
00:28:22.720
Like, individual freedom is about, it's not about the lack of rules.
00:28:28.260
It's saying, listen, I'm only going to have one glass of wine.
00:28:30.560
I'm not going to have any at all, as opposed to five or six.
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I'm only going to have one tasty cake as opposed to five or six.
00:28:36.560
Maybe I'll have, maybe have a bite just to make Jack happy and then put it, throw it
00:28:42.280
No, but whatever, whatever the, but there is these nuances to being a fully formed human
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being that can be a productive citizen of a constitutional republic.
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Because if you allow your vices to control you, then you become a slave to your vices.
00:28:58.420
And that's different from the, like, the libertine licentious, do whatever you want.
00:29:03.280
He was an expert at calling out the gods of this age, right?
00:29:05.960
You find out what the gods of this age are by when you realize what you're not allowed
00:29:11.980
So if you're not allowed to criticize MLK, he found that one out.
00:29:16.280
You're not allowed to criticize the Civil Rights Act.
00:29:18.180
Even if you like the intention of some of the Civil Rights Act, you're not allowed to
00:29:21.920
You don't have a discussion about it and suddenly it's blasphemy.
00:29:26.900
And you're not allowed to, well, you are allowed.
00:29:29.020
But when you see these incisive commentary about, you know, licentiousness versus freedom
00:29:35.720
or authenticity versus narcissism, those are the gods of this age.
00:29:42.360
How many times have you heard somebody on the news say, well, everybody wants authenticity
00:29:50.140
Well, Trump is authentically who he is, but it's also because his value system is in alignment
00:29:56.860
Trump is, you know, exceptionally American in many ways.
00:30:01.080
And that's why him being authentically American works.
00:30:03.660
Wait, that's so perfect that you mentioned this.
00:30:08.160
Oh, well, speaking of authentic Americans, let's play clip 237.
00:30:12.780
The third holy grail of taboos in American politics, you have socialism, you have Islam,
00:30:23.520
Tell me, why is Palestine a part of your politics?
00:30:26.940
When you grow up as someone, especially in the third world, you have a very different
00:30:38.120
It's just going into his mouth as he's talking.
00:30:41.440
You know, he just like fingers, you know, he just used the restroom.
00:30:45.080
You can almost guarantee that he just, he was like, hey, before I.
00:30:50.180
And by the way, when you grow up as somebody in the third world, you have a much different.
00:30:57.100
You live behind a gated community in the wealthy elite.
00:31:02.500
I think he lived in the same neighborhood as the only Ugandan billionaire.
00:31:08.560
Let me ask you guys the question that I'm not supposed to ask.
00:31:18.140
Does him winning, you're right, give the poster child for an actual socialist in the financial
00:31:29.940
But I think that it's very interesting for me to think through.
00:31:36.140
They have no policy that they're, that they're.
00:31:38.300
I mean, where's the, when's the last time we've seen a Democrat leader put out some sort
00:31:42.080
of plan in terms of a, a government budget or something?
00:31:44.980
I mean, at this point, it's just, we hate Trump.
00:31:47.400
Does him getting elected as an outed socialist create a poster child that we can have a better
00:31:54.660
dichotomy between free market capitalism and socialism?
00:31:59.900
Look, I, I hear you, but this is the George Will take.
00:32:03.340
Defeating communism is always the right answer.
00:32:06.360
There's never an answer where defeating communism isn't the right answer.
00:32:10.140
Now, I do think Mondami is going to win the race.
00:32:12.680
And I think that Sleewa is, I mean, he's running, he's running a vanity campaign and he, you
00:32:21.200
know, easily could have taken a position in, you know, something else.
00:32:26.100
He's claiming that he's been offered $10 million to drop out of the race.
00:32:29.720
I just mean, I just mean there are other ways you can serve.
00:32:32.440
And no, I'm not saying, I'm not suggesting you say you should take the money.
00:32:36.360
I'm just saying he's claiming that he's been bribed, which is not by Jack.
00:32:41.480
He, he, if you're going to offer anybody $10 million, I would.
00:32:44.680
He reminds me of so many of these candidates that I deal with.
00:32:47.600
You guys deal with these people, the Constitution Party, the Libertarian Party, the spoilers.
00:32:52.620
And look, it's a tough, tough conversation to have with folks because, you know, they kind
00:32:58.920
of have this hope and this dream and it's party loyalty and he is the Republican, right?
00:33:03.520
But what I'm saying is look at Bobby Kennedy, right?
00:33:15.800
I might not be able to become president, but I could become a kingmaker.
00:33:20.680
And then after I become kingmaker, I can still get what I want out of all of this, which is
00:33:29.380
So you look at what Bobby Kennedy did for the country because he put the country before
00:33:35.480
And look, to Sliwa, get some concessions, dude.
00:33:44.940
He realized that he had a little bit of leverage that he could use to take this Maha thing to
00:33:50.560
And the guy has just completely reoriented our entire health system in a positive way, right?
00:33:57.080
And I just look at this Sliwa guy and I'm like, look, I'm a Republican.
00:34:03.300
He could be the kingmaker right now to tell all his supporters.
00:34:07.000
And gosh, if you guys would have guessed a year ago that we'd be saying, hey, he should
00:34:10.520
be endorsing Cuomo of all people, I would have probably thought you were nuts.
00:34:16.080
Well, Andrew's best friends with his brother now, so...
00:34:20.000
I did go on Cuomo's, I guess it was a town hall last night at the Kennedy Center.
00:34:27.080
They offered, I was like, I'm here, I guess I'll do it.
00:34:33.760
But yeah, Chris is probably going to go into debate prep mode tonight, right?
00:34:38.540
I mean, or is he not allowed to because he's a journalist?
00:34:46.680
And we do have to wrap up because I think they are going to be starting soon.
00:34:53.000
I mean, listen, here's what I will say, that you're absolutely right.
00:34:58.480
I just want to make one final point on what you were saying, Cliff, about should we be
00:35:05.480
And the answer, in my opinion, is absolutely not.
00:35:08.200
You have no idea what kind of carnage this man would do to everyday Americans.
00:35:13.820
Even if they think they're voting in their own best interest, you have no idea what kind
00:35:18.860
You have no idea what kind of apparatchiks will be put in place that you will not be
00:35:22.880
able to extricate from a city that's in America.
00:35:26.040
Every single inch of terrain that is America is America.
00:35:39.100
People don't realize the facts when it just comes with NYPD.
00:35:43.420
They are going to absolutely tuck tail and run out of that city as fast as they can.
00:35:50.200
They're going to get job offers from New Jersey and Connecticut.
00:35:52.360
They're going to go to these other municipalities.
00:35:57.940
They're already getting their hands tied from some bad consent decree that just came across
00:36:02.840
But they are going to be sitting ducks, and they're going to want to get the heck out because
00:36:11.880
Yeah, they fear getting prosecuted for doing their job.
00:36:14.920
And you better darn well believe that Mom Donnie is going to be leading the charge to
00:36:20.340
create villains out of cops that get put in terrible situations because there's terrible
00:36:25.360
people running loose in the streets of New York.
00:36:31.800
I think we're going to see if we can find Mikey as well.
00:36:36.220
And by the way, Mikey's going to be on our show tomorrow for the AMA out of Phoenix.
00:37:34.260
Who will lead New York City into the next decade?
00:37:39.520
The New York City mayoral general election debate.
00:37:42.300
With independent candidate and former New York governor, Andrew Cuomo.
00:37:48.500
Democratic candidate and New York State Assembly member, Zoran Mamdani.
00:37:53.820
Republican candidate and Guardian Angels founder, Curtis Liwa.
00:38:10.120
Here now, News for New York anchor, David Ushery.
00:38:15.240
Good evening, everyone, and welcome to this New York City mayoral debate.
00:38:19.020
We are less than three weeks from Election Day when one of these men will be declared the 111th mayor of New York City.
00:38:25.820
I'm joined by my colleague, News Fork, government affairs reporter, Melissa Russo, senior politics editor at Politico, Sally Goldenberg, and Telemundo 47 anchor, Rosarena Breton.
00:38:36.280
This is a two-hour debate live on all NBC New York and Telemundo 47 streaming and digital platforms.
00:38:46.720
The first hour is also live on Channel 4 and Telemundo 47.
00:38:52.580
For traditional question and answer, you'll have one minute to respond, and we'll offer 30-second rebuttals at the moderator's discretion.
00:38:59.360
We'll also be asking questions where we will be looking for shorter answers.
00:39:03.340
We also reserve the right to cut off your microphone if you ignore the rules, but candidates, you know we don't want to do that.
00:39:08.620
The goal is for you to hear each other, and for New Yorkers to hear everything you have to say.
00:39:19.520
We begin tonight by asking you to do what every mayor dreams of, and that is to write your own headlines.
00:39:27.380
Imagine it's January 2027, and you have been in office for exactly one year.
00:39:32.400
We would like you to quickly give us one headline about what you think your biggest accomplishment will have been in year number one.
00:39:42.300
First, thank you very much for sponsoring the debate and having all of us.
00:39:45.700
First, the one headline, how many characters in the headline?
00:39:50.360
You know, you're familiar with headline length.
00:39:52.880
Rent down, comma, crime down, comma, education scores up, comma, more jobs in New York City, comma.
00:40:03.700
Now we're getting maybe a little over the average headline length, but...
00:40:11.140
Curtis Sliwa is without his iconic red beret because I'm talking to the people of New York City about the really serious issues of affordability, the cost of living, and obviously what I spent most of my life doing, which is public safety in the streets and the subway.
00:40:31.420
What will your headline be, your big headline, and your number one as mayor?
00:40:35.060
Curtis Sliwa exceeds all expectations and looks very mayoral tonight.
00:40:41.940
Mr. Mamdani, you've had some time to think about it now.
00:40:45.180
It's a pleasure to be here, first of all, and I really want to thank the moderators and the opportunity to speak directly to New Yorkers about this moment in time and our opportunity to transform the most expensive city in the United States of America.
00:40:55.460
The headline would read, in about a year, Mamdani continues to take on Trump, delivers on affordability agenda for New Yorkers.
00:41:07.640
Voters have reservations about all three of you as chief executive of New York City, a city with roughly 300,000 employees and a budget bigger than many countries.
00:41:16.780
We have questions for each of you, and, Mr. Cuomo, we will begin with you.
00:41:20.300
As a former governor of New York, you obviously have the management experience.
00:41:24.120
But you resigned from office amid sexual harassment and COVID-related scandals.
00:41:29.020
Why should voters now trust that you have the character to be mayor?
00:41:34.520
Thank you very much, and thank you for the question.
00:41:41.120
There was a report that was done that had allegations of harassment.
00:41:44.620
I said at the time it was a political report and that there was no basis to it.
00:42:03.020
When it comes to executive experience, I've run the Department of Housing and Urban Development, built housing all across the nation.
00:42:11.600
The budget is double what it is in New York City, and I got government to work.
00:42:17.300
I passed groundbreaking laws, minimum wage, paid family leave, built projects that had never been built before.
00:42:28.560
And if you look at the failed mayors, they're ones that had no management experience.
00:42:37.020
In the theme of leadership, Mr. Mandani, you work as a foreclosure prevention counselor for winning seat in the State Assembly.
00:42:49.020
How are you ready to lead the nation's largest and greatest city in the world in one day?
00:42:58.520
You know, I have the experience of having served in the New York State Assembly for five years and watching a broken political system.
00:43:05.380
The experience of seeing a governor in Andrew Cuomo who would rather have served his billionaire donors and the working-class New Yorkers who voted for him.
00:43:13.640
And the experience amidst all of that of fighting and winning for working-class taxi drivers to free them from predatory debt and delivering the first free bus lines in New York City history.
00:43:23.560
And in working with unions and working-class New Yorkers to finally raise taxes just that little bit on Mr. Cuomo's donors to start to fully fund our public school.
00:43:32.420
And more than that, I have the experience of being a New Yorker, someone who has actually paid rent in this city before I ran for mayor, someone who has had to wait for a bus that never came, someone who actually buys his groceries in this same city.
00:43:45.300
And what all of that experience has shown me, which Mr. Cuomo can't seem to understand, is that it is far too expensive and far too hard for New Yorkers to afford to live in this city.
00:43:55.160
And the definition of experience is not doing the same thing again and again and hoping for a different result.
00:44:05.240
In other words, what the assemblyman said is he has no experience.
00:44:08.740
And this is not a job for someone who has no management experience to run 300,000 people, no financial experience to run, $115 billion budget.
00:44:20.420
On his resume, it says he interned for his mother.
00:44:26.660
Any day, you could have a hurricane, you could have, God forbid, a 9-11, a health pandemic.
00:44:32.380
If you don't know what you're doing, people could die.
00:44:37.340
And if we have a health pandemic, then why would New Yorkers turn back to the governor who sent seniors to their death in nursing homes?
00:44:43.200
That's the kind of experience that's on offer here today.
00:44:45.740
What I don't have in experience, I make up for in integrity.
00:44:48.060
And what you don't have in integrity, you could never make up for in experience.
00:44:52.300
First, what you said was totally false, as you know.
00:44:57.020
During COVID, everyone did whatever they could in this state.
00:45:00.380
And there have been numerous investigations where they've gone through it, and they said we followed federal guidance.
00:45:10.040
And my heart breaks for everyone that died in this state and across this nation.
00:45:16.400
But just to be clear, Mr., just to fact-check that, there is a criminal investigation reportedly underway at the DOJ about your testimony to Congress about your nursing home record.
00:45:26.560
Yeah, but that was, that is a political issue with the Congress.
00:45:31.200
They made a referral, which has gone absolutely nowhere.
00:45:34.960
But there have been multiple investigations where the DOJ found that the nursing home investigation was politically motivated.
00:45:48.220
I just finished my rebuttal, but the Assemblyman still says he has no experience to do the job.
00:45:58.040
Mr. Shiloh, as founder of the Guardian Angels and as a radio host, you've been a well-known figure in New York City for decades.
00:46:05.780
But you also lack substantial management experience.
00:46:09.140
So how are you prepared to be the chief executive officer of New York City?
00:46:16.280
First of all, I created the Guardian Angels to provide public safety in the subways and streets when government was incapable of doing so.
00:46:27.380
Secondarily, I don't declare myself to be all-knowing.
00:46:30.700
I will hire the very brightest and best in their fields who have dedicated their lives to trying to improve the city of New York or the state or the federal government or the private sector.
00:46:43.880
But what I will say is, thank God I'm not a professional politician.
00:46:48.500
We have the architect and we have the apprentice of no cash bail, which has been a disaster.
00:46:54.240
We have the architect and the apprentice here of raise the age.
00:46:57.940
My own son was almost killed because of that in a gang attack.
00:47:01.880
We have the architect and we have the apprentice of closed Rikers Island, which would just release criminals in the street.
00:47:08.940
Thank God I'm not a professional politician because they have helped create this crime crisis in the city that we face.
00:47:20.400
Candidates, President Trump has expressed intense interest in this election and in all of you personally.
00:47:27.940
Mr. Mamdani, the president called you, quote, my little communist.
00:47:31.700
Mr. Sliwa, he said you're, quote, not exactly prime time.
00:47:36.160
Mr. Cuomo, he has been critical of you but said you have always gotten along.
00:47:39.720
The president has threatened to cut federal funds to the city.
00:47:43.160
And just yesterday, he killed the Gateway Project, the tunnel connecting New York to New Jersey.
00:47:50.720
What would you say in your first official call with the president to set the tone for your relationship moving forward?
00:48:00.500
I would make it clear to the president that I am willing to not only speak to him but to work with him if it means delivering on lowering the cost of living for New Yorkers.
00:48:09.340
That's something that he ran his presidential campaign on.
00:48:11.360
And yet all he's been able to deliver thus far has been prosecuting his political enemies and trying to enact the largest deportation program in American history.
00:48:21.160
And what distinguishes me from Andrew Cuomo is the fact that he has gotten on the phone with that same president, not asking him how to work together to help New Yorkers,
00:48:29.780
or not telling him that he would refuse to back down to protect those New Yorkers, but instead asking him how to win this race.
00:48:39.040
And what I tell the president is if he ever wants to come for New Yorkers in the way that he has been, he's going to have to get through me as the next mayor of this city.
00:48:46.420
Mr. Cuomo, we'll give you a little extra time, but I'd like you to answer this question as well, what your first conversation with the president would be like.
00:48:52.800
First, I never had a conversation with the president at the Assemblyman's talking about.
00:48:56.400
But he has a distant relationship with the truth.
00:49:01.700
I would say to the president in the first conversation, look, we have had many, many battles.
00:49:07.360
I fought with, we fought together every day during COVID.
00:49:17.100
You know, if you come after New York, you know what I'm going to do.
00:49:22.480
And, you know, my chances are almost 50-50, even though you're the president.
00:49:32.200
But, number one, I will fight you every step of the way if you try to hurt New York.
00:49:37.040
Unless he weaponizes the justice system to go after the attorney general of this state, in which case you'll issue a statement that doesn't even name the president.
00:49:44.520
And no matter what you think about Donald Trump, you know that not even being able to name him is an act of cowardice.
00:49:49.480
And that's what we would see from Donald Trump's puppet on the right over here.
00:49:52.340
I do want to get to Ms. Sleewa, but Mr. Cuomo, I'll give you a few seconds to respond to that.
00:49:56.320
I did mention, I said political weaponization of the justice system is wrong.
00:50:11.540
I want to give Mr. Sleewa a chance to answer this.
00:50:13.380
Mr. Sleewa, your first official conversation with the president, what would you say to set the tone?
00:50:17.480
Well, first of all, there's high levels of testosterone in this room.
00:50:20.980
I've had a love-hate relationship with Donald Trump that goes back over 30 years.
00:50:32.520
Look, you can be tough, but you can't be tough if it's going to cost people desperately needed federal funds.
00:50:40.700
Zohan Mandami, the president has already said, he's going to take $7 billion out of the budget right from the start if you're elected mayor.
00:50:54.840
I would say, look, Mr. President, we need that gateway tunnel.
00:50:58.320
It moves millions of people from Washington, D.C. to Boston.
00:51:04.920
We don't need those three stations going from 96th Street to 125th.
00:51:11.200
Sit with the president and whoever he delegates and try to negotiate.
00:51:14.980
But if you try to get tough with Trump, the only people who are going to suffer from that are the people of New Yorkshire.
00:51:23.920
You know, Mr. Trump is already suspending infrastructure grants to this city.
00:51:28.240
And he's doing it in a blatant act of political retribution.
00:51:31.160
And what it requires is leadership that will stand up to him.
00:51:35.380
We do need to extend the 2nd Avenue subway to 125th Street.
00:51:39.000
It was a promise made to Harlemites decades ago.
00:51:52.680
When was the last time you spoke with President Trump?
00:51:58.340
And the last time you said you couldn't remember?
00:52:00.540
I believe it was during his assassination attempt.
00:52:06.120
Mr. Slewa, when was the last time you spoke with President Trump?
00:52:12.320
I was praising him for saving the annual Veterans Day parade.
00:52:18.960
Those were the conversations that I had with him.
00:52:31.060
We have more than a capable system of transporting people.
00:52:34.740
The infrastructure needs to be fixed in the system that we have.
00:52:38.720
Mr. Mamdani, have you ever spoken with President Trump?
00:52:46.460
President Trump has spoken positively about you and your candidacy, even as his Justice
00:52:51.320
Department, as we've noted, is reportedly investigating you for allegations you lied to Congress over
00:52:57.740
Given that dynamic, how would you be able to stand up to this White House?
00:53:02.600
And just take into account that New Yorkers are troubled by what they view as a compromise
00:53:06.700
relationship the current outgoing mayor has with the president.
00:53:10.020
First, you're wrong when you say there's any investigation of me.
00:53:15.160
Do you have evidence there is no investigation?
00:53:20.000
They said they sent a letter to the Department of Justice, which they do routinely to generate
00:53:32.020
He investigated me repeatedly with the Department of Justice.
00:53:36.480
The Department of Justice Inspector General said that it was actually politically motivated.
00:53:44.240
When I'm fighting for New York, I am not going to stop.
00:53:47.160
And I'll tell you something else, if the Assemblyman is elected mayor, Donald Trump will take
00:53:52.340
over New York City, and it will be Mayor Trump who runs New York City.
00:53:58.600
You're saying unequivocally the Justice Department is not investigating you, correct?
00:54:06.680
They could be, and you might not have heard it.
00:54:14.460
So, Mr. Cuomo, you did put out an ad the day after the news first broke in the New York
00:54:18.380
Times that you were under investigation, calling it a political investigation, saying they were
00:54:22.220
coming after you, as they had to, you know, after other Democratic politicians.
00:54:30.260
I believe they play politics with the justice system.
00:54:38.540
And that's why I think people are sick and tired of the justice system and the politics.
00:54:43.420
If you think that there's no difference between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party,
00:54:48.700
If you think it's time to have a Democratic Party that actually stands up to Donald Trump
00:54:52.600
and his billionaire-backed assault on working people, that's the candidate for you.
00:55:07.180
You may have a chance to address it, but we do...
00:55:09.340
There's a lot of issues to get to with New Yorkers, Mr. Bob Dodd.
00:55:12.440
You didn't say leave it blank in the Kamala campaign?
00:55:15.600
I said leave it blank in the presidential primary, because primaries are a place to air dissent.
00:55:20.740
And like many Americans, I was horrified by the Israeli genocide of Palestinians.
00:55:25.760
And if you want to look for me on the ballot, you'll find me as the Democrat.
00:55:30.960
This week, the world is reacting to President Trump's Israel-Hamas peace deal and the release
00:55:38.100
And many are cautiously optimistic about a lasting peace.
00:55:41.980
Of course, the mayor has no direct role in foreign affairs, and we certainly have a lot
00:55:48.400
But this war has been a major topic in the campaign, and there are criticisms about your
00:55:53.940
positions in the past and how you envision leading on these issues as mayor.
00:55:58.060
So we have questions for all of you, but first for Mr. Momdani, because of something you
00:56:02.720
said that's been generating headlines in the news today as we come into the debate yesterday
00:56:07.180
on Fox News, you were asked if Hamas should lay down its weapons, key to the peace plan
00:56:16.460
You said, quote, I don't really have opinions about the future of Hamas and Israel beyond the
00:56:21.320
question of justice and safety and the fact that anything has to abide by international
00:56:27.180
And that applies to Hamas, and that applies to the Israeli military.
00:56:31.100
So for the voters tuning in tonight, Mr. Momdani, what do you believe about Hamas and
00:56:38.860
We know it's a complicated matter, but we'd like you to keep your answer to a minute if
00:56:42.680
Of course, I believe that they should lay down their arms.
00:56:45.520
I'm proud to be one of the first elected officials in the state who called for a cease
00:56:49.900
And calling for a cease fire means seizing fire.
00:56:53.000
That means all parties have to cease fire and put down their weapons.
00:56:56.460
And the reason that we call for that is not only for the end of the genocide, but also
00:57:05.020
I, like many New Yorkers, am hopeful that this cease fire will hold.
00:57:12.360
And for it to be just, we also have to ensure that it addresses the conditions that preceded this,
00:57:17.800
conditions like occupation, like the siege and apartheid.
00:57:23.800
If I may, that means from the river to the sea.
00:57:37.740
The president of the United States should have been applauded by you, Zohan Mandami, and you,
00:57:43.120
Andrew Cuomo, on the day that he brought together that international coalition that met in Egypt
00:57:48.700
that came from the Middle East and the Persian Gulf.
00:57:51.020
I certainly applauded him for bringing peace to Gaza and trying to end the hostilities in
00:57:57.100
the war between the Israelis and Hamas so there can be peace between the Israelis and
00:58:05.320
But you seem, Zohan, to be incapable of praising our president.
00:58:09.100
And, Andrew, you were incapable of praising our president.
00:58:15.860
Gentlemen, we want to hear everything you have to say.
00:58:18.680
Mr. Cuomo, please, brief response, because we do have other questions on this issue that
00:58:23.300
I did applaud President Trump and his administration.
00:58:32.280
The assemblymen will not denounce Hassan Piker, who said America deserved 9-11.
00:58:37.980
The assemblyman just said in his response, well, it depends on occupation.
00:58:44.080
That is code, meaning that Israel does not have a right to exist as a Jewish state, which
00:58:55.060
That's why he won't denounce Globalize the Intifada, which means kill all Jews.
00:58:59.920
Let's give Mr. Mamdani a chance to respond to that.
00:59:03.200
The occupation is a reference to international law and the violation of it, which Mr. Cuomo
00:59:09.480
has no regard for since he signed up to be Benjamin Netanyahu's legal defense team during
00:59:15.920
And I find the comments that Hassan made on 9-11 to be objectionable and reprehensible.
00:59:21.300
And I also think that part of the reason why Democrats are in the situation that we are
00:59:25.700
in of being a permanent minority in this country is we are looking only to speak to journalists
00:59:30.200
and streamers and Americans with whom we agree of every single thing that they say.
00:59:37.740
And I'm happy to do that, which is why I was on Fox News yesterday talking about I wish
00:59:41.640
it was more like NASCAR so we could see all the billionaires who are sponsoring you right
00:59:47.920
Yeah, actually, this kind of flows and then we'll go back to Melissa.
00:59:50.940
Mr. Mamdani, you told NBC's Meet the Press that you don't believe it's the role of the
00:59:56.940
Your words about this war have comforted many New Yorkers, but they've troubled others.
01:00:03.420
There is your recent refusal, as we just discussed, to condemn the slogan Globalize the Intifada,
01:00:10.460
In 2017, you wrapped lyrics praising the Holy Land Five.
01:00:14.340
These are men who were convicted of supporting terrorism.
01:00:16.580
How would you assure New Yorkers, especially Jewish residents who might be concerned about
01:00:28.160
When I am speaking about the responsibility of leading this city, I mean leading not just
01:00:35.440
those who voted for me, leading not just those who vote, but leading every single person who
01:00:43.540
And I have been so thankful for the opportunity I've had to sit with so many Jewish New Yorkers
01:00:48.120
over the course of the primary and through the general.
01:00:50.740
And it's in those conversations that I learned that this phrase evokes many painful memories,
01:00:55.880
memories of bus attacks in Haifa, restaurant attacks in Jerusalem.
01:01:00.060
And I heard from a rabbi about their roommate who was killed on one of those buses.
01:01:04.560
And in hearing that and the distance between that impact and the rationale that some use
01:01:09.720
of saying it, of speaking about the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, is why I said
01:01:13.840
that I would discourage this language, language that I do not use.
01:01:16.900
And what I'm looking to do as the first Muslim mayor of this city is to ensure that we bring
01:01:21.360
every New Yorker together, Jewish New Yorkers, Muslim New Yorkers, every single person that
01:01:26.580
That they understand they won't just be protected, but they will belong.
01:01:33.100
While you are a strong supporter of Israel, you have also been slow to develop a relationship
01:01:41.160
You have called Mr. Mamdani a terrorist sympathizer.
01:01:45.160
How do you assure those New Yorkers, especially Muslims and Arabic New Yorkers, that you will
01:01:53.500
Well, first, I think the Assemblyman created the perception himself.
01:02:03.260
Why did it take us here tonight for the first time for him to say it?
01:02:06.920
He still won't denounce, globalize the Intifada, which means kill all Jews.
01:02:17.820
Mr. Cuomo, can you address the question that we're bringing to you?
01:02:19.440
I think you've made the point, but can you please answer about your own relationship with
01:02:27.240
Yeah, I don't think in any way the Assemblyman is representative of the Muslim community, which
01:02:37.200
And I am very fond of and I've been working with.
01:02:44.900
Many of his positions don't even follow the Muslim faith.
01:02:53.520
You know, it took Andrew Cuomo being beaten by a Muslim candidate in the Democratic primary
01:02:59.740
He had more than 10 years and he couldn't name a single mosque at the last debate we had
01:03:05.200
And what Muslims want in this city is what every community wants and deserves.
01:03:10.920
And it took me to get you to even see those Muslims as part of this city.
01:03:15.200
And that, frankly, is something that is shameful and is why so many New Yorkers have lost faith
01:03:23.760
I've worked with the Muslim community for many, many years.
01:03:26.720
Name a single mosque you went to when you were the governor.
01:03:29.140
Can you name a single mosque you went to in 10 years?
01:03:42.040
We worked in religious working groups, tolerance groups.
01:03:44.360
Tolerance groups, anti-Semitic groups, et cetera.
01:03:48.100
Mr. Slewoy, Rosarito has a specific question for you, but I'll give you a few seconds later.
01:03:54.400
You will be celebrating your birthday this weekend.
01:03:57.380
In 1991, I was in the streets of Crown Heights with the Guardian Angels for 30 days and 30 nights
01:04:04.480
when the first Democratic Socialists mayor of New York City, that's right, David Dinkins,
01:04:09.300
who was a proud member of the Democratic Socialists of America, abandoned the Jews for three days.
01:04:16.620
And we protected them for 30 days and 30 nights.
01:04:20.280
Then your favorite mayor, Bill de Blasio, in 2019, abandoned the Jews again when they were being attacked in Williamsburg and Burrell Park and Crown Heights.
01:04:29.020
And I had to bring the Guardian Angels in for 30 days and 30 nights.
01:04:32.480
Jews don't trust that you are going to be there for them when they are victims of anti-Semitic attacks.
01:04:41.260
We have a specific question for you from Rosarito, but Mr. Mamdani, please.
01:04:46.360
One of the most meaningful experiences I've had over the course of this campaign has been the conversations I've had with Jewish New Yorkers.
01:04:54.380
Jewish New Yorkers who've told me about the door that they've had to lock that they had kept open for 40 years.
01:04:59.660
Jewish New Yorkers who've told me on the M57 about an apartment the speech therapist was trying to sell
01:05:05.040
when a realtor told her, put the Jewish books off the table.
01:05:07.800
Jewish New Yorkers who've told me about their fear in living in this city.
01:05:11.960
And I will be a mayor who finally addresses that, not through the theatrics of the politics on this stage, but through action.
01:05:18.340
I'll do that by ensuring that we have police officers outside of synagogues in the High Holy Days.
01:05:22.920
Gentlemen, we have a lot to get to, and we do have a specific question for Mr. Sliwa.
01:05:28.400
Mr. Sliwa, you've called for tougher policing of pro-Palestinian protests,
01:05:32.620
and you've suggested that Mr. Mamdani uses languages that is anti-Semitic.
01:05:37.940
How do you assure New Yorkers that you'll be the mayor for all?
01:05:43.860
Well, I've been there for all people at all times for 46 years as leader of the Guardian Angels here and around the world.
01:05:50.560
Whether it is a religious violation of people's rights to worship as they choose in a mosque,
01:05:56.980
in a church, in a synagogue, or a shul, whether it's because of racial identity.
01:06:02.760
Remember, in the summer of 2020, Asians were under constant attack because of the lockdown and pandemic.
01:06:10.760
I don't remember Governor Cuomo coming to their aid.
01:06:14.860
I was out there going into all the neighborhoods, Flushing, Bayside.
01:06:22.600
We were in Chinatown itself, where Asians were being attacked indiscriminately because they were thought to be carrying COVID.
01:06:38.480
And in order to counteract hate, you have to get the community involved along with the police to protect people when they're under siege.
01:06:46.520
Jews are under attack now more than ever before.
01:06:49.460
And I don't believe either of you have the capabilities of protecting them with increased anti-Semitism.
01:06:57.440
I passed the no hate in our state, the strongest hate crime law in the United States of America.
01:07:14.840
If you notice, the assemblyman still won't say he believes that Israel has the right to exist as a Jewish state.
01:07:21.720
He is a divisive personality all across the board.
01:07:29.100
And he gave the finger to the Christopher Columbus statue.
01:07:31.820
By the way, your laws with no cash fail turn the haters right back in the street to violate and attack again and again and again.
01:07:46.360
There have been a number of absolutely unfounded lies that have been said by Andrew Koma.
01:07:50.060
I would just like a moment to address them directly.
01:07:52.640
I've said time and again that I recognize Israel's right to exist.
01:07:55.900
I've said that I will not recognize any states.
01:08:02.360
That I would not recognize any states' right to exist with a system of hierarchy on the basis of race, of religion.
01:08:07.900
I have made that very clear and part of that is because I'm an American who believes in the importance of equal rights being enshrined in every single country.
01:08:15.900
Whether we're speaking about Israel or whether we're speaking about Saudi Arabia.
01:08:19.120
You can stand here and you can lie all you want.
01:08:25.640
And we have another polarizing issue that we would love to discuss with you candidates.
01:08:30.080
And let's talk about the National Guard here in the city of New York.
01:08:33.660
Now, let's go back to Mr. President Donald Trump.
01:08:37.220
One threat hanging over the city is the deployment of the National Guard troops like he has done, as you all know, in other cities.
01:08:45.200
The NYPD commissioner has rejected the idea as unnecessary.
01:08:50.160
But the president ordered troops to hit the streets of New York.
01:08:59.460
There's no need for the National Guard in New York.
01:09:01.480
Kathy Hochul, the governor, when we had a crime crisis in the subways that I'm well familiar with, being down there all the time, unlike my two adversaries.
01:09:11.000
She sent 750 National Guardsmen down into the subways in 2024.
01:09:21.760
That woman who was set on fire by that migrant.
01:09:24.780
As a result of that, the worst crime I've ever seen committed in the subway system.
01:09:32.080
She sent an additional 250 National Guardsmen, giving us a total of 1,000 National Guardsmen in the subway system.
01:09:39.120
While our mayor, Eric Adams, was telling us it was all a perception.
01:09:45.100
I would tell the president of the United States, since I'm familiar with cities all across America having guardian angels there, if you were going to send the National Guard, you don't need to send them to New York City.
01:09:56.300
There are other cities that could desperately use their help in dealing with their crime crisis.
01:10:04.600
You know, I agree with Police Commissioner Tish in that we do not need the National Guard here in New York City.
01:10:10.440
We do not need them for the purpose of safety, because if it was safety that President Trump was so concerned about, he would send them to the 8 out of 10 states that have the highest levels of crime in this country.
01:10:19.940
But he won't, because they're all run by Republicans.
01:10:23.200
What New Yorkers need is a mayor who can stand up to Donald Trump and actually deliver on that safety.
01:10:28.260
When Donald Trump sent ICE agents on people in Los Angeles, Andrew Cuomo said that New Yorkers need not overreact.
01:10:36.040
That is the furthest answer that New Yorkers are looking for.
01:10:38.840
They are looking for someone who will lead, someone who will say that they will have their back, someone who will actually fight for the people of this city.
01:10:45.360
And that's who I am, because I'm not funded by the same donors that gave us Donald Trump's second term, which isn't something that Andrew Cuomo can say.
01:10:52.900
First, the answer in the subways is not more National Guard.
01:10:59.700
But the National Guard is not, he's not sending in the National Guard to do any real function.
01:11:08.540
He's trying to say these Democrats don't know how to run these cities, and it's a political gesture by sending in the National Guard.
01:11:14.880
He has said if the Assemblyman is elected, he will take over New York.
01:11:23.720
The question is, if they order the troops to come here, what would they do?
01:11:29.680
He sent the National Guard to 20 cities when I was governor.
01:11:37.280
Because I said to him, don't you dare, we don't need it, and he backed down, and he will again.
01:11:43.280
So that proves a good relationship with the president.
01:11:44.960
The president is going to back down to you, Andrew Cuomo.
01:11:47.640
I know you think you're the toughest guy alive, but let me tell you something.
01:11:58.340
And you have a difficult understanding that what the term no is.
01:12:09.080
And he can't stand up to Donald Trump, who knocked him right on his tookus.
01:12:14.880
You don't fight with him, because only the people of New York City will lose.
01:12:23.240
Are there any circumstances where any of you would allow the NYPD to cooperate with
01:12:29.120
the National Guard if Trump sent them to New York?
01:12:35.920
If history is a guide, National Guard troops in the city could trigger protests.
01:12:40.360
And we have questions for each of you about how you would handle that.
01:12:44.380
So, Mr. Sliwa, you have been arrested for protesting migrant housing and for trying to
01:12:55.740
And would you continue participating in protests as mayor?
01:13:00.860
Well, I have been arrested oftentimes in civil disobedience.
01:13:10.000
And it used to be, before Bill de Blasio, I know he was your favorite mayor, Joan Mandami,
01:13:16.180
There's a time period you were in a structured area.
01:13:21.400
If there was going to be civil disobedience, you discussed it with the police department.
01:13:26.500
And obviously, you had an opportunity of expressing your anger or your outrage at whatever it was
01:13:32.960
that motivated you to sit down in the street, to block traffic or block an egress.
01:13:37.660
Now, we have rampaging groups that go running through the streets that enter all kinds of facilities and violate other people's rights.
01:13:49.220
When I'm the mayor, there are rules and regulations.
01:13:54.020
But you can't violate other people's rights or you yourself must be arrested.
01:14:04.080
Why are you afraid of identifying who you are as a demonstrator unless maybe you're an agent provocateur who's been sent in here to cause chaos?
01:14:16.040
You were arrested for blocking traffic in a pro-Palestinian protest.
01:14:20.140
And you participated in a sit-in at Grand Central.
01:14:24.220
Protesters offered block streets, bridges, and hubs like Grand Central.
01:14:32.440
And what's your line in having the NYPD arrest protesters?
01:14:37.500
Protest is a part of what makes this city's history what it is.
01:14:45.460
We deserve to have a mayor who stands up for that First Amendment, especially as we have a president that's looking to shred it at each and every opportunity.
01:14:52.800
And we will continue to have protests in this city as we should no matter who is the mayor.
01:14:57.500
And the line will be on the question of breaking the law.
01:15:00.580
What we have today, however, is an attempt to intimidate so many who are looking to use that freedom of expression to share their opinions about the city and the world around them.
01:15:10.660
And to be frank with you, what New Yorkers are looking for is someone who can show leadership in City Hall.
01:15:17.420
Because when they don't see that leadership, that's when so many take to the streets.
01:15:21.140
And if you had a leader like Andrew Cuomo, who was telling people not to overreact when they see ICE agents abducting girls as young as six years old to deport them, many New Yorkers will take to the streets.
01:15:32.420
We deserve to have a leader who will actually be following through on the values of the city.
01:15:39.640
If you're elected, would you still participate in protests?
01:15:42.980
If I'm elected, I'll be the mayor and I'll be leading the city from City Hall.
01:15:52.100
If I may respond, because I believe my name was invoked.
01:15:55.240
A very brief response, and then a question for you.
01:15:59.740
I had a war with ICE here in New York when I was governor.
01:16:06.460
What the assemblyman is saying is he doesn't believe in law and order.
01:16:10.660
He believes in defunding the police, disarming the police, disbanding the police.
01:16:20.300
And then we do just 15 seconds, because we have a question for Mr. Cuomo.
01:16:27.840
I am running to actually work with the police to deliver public safety.
01:16:33.660
He has not said a word about the abductions that are happening right now.
01:16:36.420
He's referring to a previous comment you made, and we will get back to this.
01:16:44.720
As governor, you put the National Guard on standby during the George Floyd protests.
01:16:50.040
As mayor, talk about how you would balance the right to protest with maintaining order
01:17:03.400
And you have New Yorkers now who are afraid in this city.
01:17:11.080
And they're afraid of the anarchy in this city itself.
01:17:14.920
We have to provide public safety that makes New Yorkers feel safe.
01:17:25.500
Stopping students from going to class is something else.
01:17:35.940
They're not racists, as the assemblyman calls them.
01:17:40.620
They're not a threat to public safety, as he says.
01:17:45.260
They are here to protect New Yorkers, work with them, fortify them.
01:17:51.520
You know, that's ironic that you say that now, Andrew Cuomo, because when you were governor
01:17:57.140
for eight years, your parole board released 43 cop killers back into the street.
01:18:04.180
Your father, when he was governor, released none.
01:18:12.040
I'm sorry, we have to respond briefly to the comments that Mr. Cuomo raised about things
01:18:23.420
I have been clear time and time again that as much as Andrew Cuomo wants to bring up tweets
01:18:28.880
from 2020, which is around the same time that he was sending seniors to their death in
01:18:33.860
I am looking to work with police officers, not to defund the NYPD, looking to ensure that
01:18:39.360
officers can actually do one job when they're signing up to join that department.
01:18:43.320
Not the many jobs we're asking them to do today with the mental health crisis.
01:18:46.720
We will come back to that, but we're out of time.
01:18:55.700
Despite record low crime numbers, polls show that crime remains a top concern for New York
01:19:02.000
The three of you have very different approaches to crime fighting and how to manage the NYPD.
01:19:11.680
How will you make the city safer and how will you change the NYPD?
01:19:22.960
The far left, the socialists that defund the police, defund the police, they took a billion
01:19:28.120
The NYPD is now down at one of the lowest levels in modern political history.
01:19:32.320
I would add 5,000 police, put 1,500 in the subways, raise the starting salary because
01:19:43.580
And you have to add additional police officers because the attrition rate is so high.
01:19:49.560
Part of that is going to be saying to the NYPD, I respect you.
01:19:53.820
I don't think you're wicked, as the assemblyman said.
01:20:04.800
That's how you're going to get the police to apply for the jobs.
01:20:10.560
And then we have to work on the relationship between the community and the police.
01:20:22.140
I'm standing here with my two adversaries, both of whom have threatened to defund the
01:20:28.380
You, Andrew Cuomo, during the summer of 2020, you said, if you don't reform police departments,
01:20:41.180
The problem in recruiting police, which neither of you are addressing, is that their insurance
01:20:49.180
The state, you did nothing when you were governor.
01:20:51.480
And here in the city, 2021, the city council and Eric Adams did nothing.
01:20:56.080
They don't have qualified immunity, which you benefited from, Andrew Cuomo, with the 13 lawsuits
01:21:05.440
Tom DiNapoli says we're paying out $60 million.
01:21:09.300
Because you had your qualified immunity as governor, and yet people have stood by as
01:21:15.760
police have lost their insurance that all civil servants have.
01:21:19.400
That's why you can't get recruits in, because they're not insured.
01:21:23.140
I will return their qualified immunity because they need to be protected like other civil servants.
01:21:30.180
It's New York City under qualified insurance, under qualified immunity.
01:21:35.720
You are entitled to free legal counsel, which is what he's referring to.
01:21:40.360
But it's New York City that has revoked qualified immunity.
01:21:49.620
Well, that protected you in all these lawsuits.
01:21:51.480
And yes, the lawsuits, because there was a report filed.
01:22:08.920
After five years, five VA's, five years of litigation, I was dropped from the case.
01:22:14.040
Mr. Mamdani, how will you make the city safer, and how will you change the NYPD?
01:22:23.060
This is the concern for so many New Yorkers, and I am proud to have a comprehensive plan
01:22:29.980
If you want more of the same, vote for Andrew Cuomo.
01:22:32.280
If you want an actual approach to lower crime, look at our Department of Community Safety.
01:22:37.180
That is something that has been hailed by experts as addressing so many of the pieces
01:22:43.760
We will ensure that no longer are police officers asked to do the job of both policing
01:22:50.960
We will have dedicated teams of mental health outreach workers in the top 100 subway stations
01:22:56.180
with the highest levels of the mental health crisis and homelessness.
01:22:59.400
We will ensure that cops can finally go back to the response times they used to have in 2020,
01:23:04.880
closer to 11 minutes, as opposed to the closer to 16 minutes today,
01:23:08.480
because they won't be asked to respond to the 200,000 mental health calls
01:23:18.660
It's time we deliver it right here in New York City.
01:23:24.900
It was called the Homeless Outreach Unit of Cops and Mental Health Care Officials.
01:23:34.780
Mr. Mamdani, we're going to talk about disciplining police officers.
01:23:38.220
The civilian watchdog that investigates police misconduct
01:23:40.980
regularly recommends discipline for cops accused of wrongdoing,
01:23:44.820
but the police commissioner often overrides them.
01:23:47.580
You want to change that policy so that the board has final say.
01:23:53.260
why you believe the police commissioner should no longer have that final say.
01:23:57.500
What I've said is that I think it's time to remove much of the politics
01:24:02.860
We have the Civilian Complaint Review Board, which, as you said, studies, assesses,
01:24:08.040
and investigates into complaints of abuse and the violation of the law.
01:24:12.320
And oftentimes, those recommendations are then subject to political pressures and not
01:24:17.420
I think New Yorkers deserve a system where they know it won't then be assessed once again
01:24:22.240
that there's actually more to the recommendation in the investigation that's being done by the CCO.
01:24:29.100
Mr. Cuomo, do you believe changes are needed for how officers are disciplined?
01:24:33.820
And are there any powers that you would give up as mayor?
01:24:38.600
Yeah. I would not remove the police commissioner from the CCRB.
01:24:45.520
I think Commissioner Tisha is doing a very good job.
01:24:48.700
The difference between me and the assemblyman is he doesn't like the police.
01:24:53.040
That's why he won't hire more police when everyone else says we need more police.
01:24:58.160
He wants to use social workers on domestic violence calls, which are very dangerous.
01:25:06.240
He thinks the police are racist, wicked, corrupt, and a threat to public safety.
01:25:15.300
Andrew Cuomo is a politician of the past, and all he can speak about are the tweets of the past in 2020.
01:25:21.020
Those are tweets which I have apologized for to New Yorkers and police officers directly,
01:25:25.540
and they are not what I am actually running on.
01:25:28.440
You're incapable of actually speaking about the platform that we have here,
01:25:33.140
Can we just quickly ask you, because I think what some people feel they haven't heard from you,
01:25:36.820
we hear you saying that you don't believe that anymore and you've apologized.
01:25:40.380
People have not heard you sort of describe the evolution of your thought,
01:25:46.380
You know, growing up in this city, I would think often about safety and justice
01:25:51.500
and the ways in which that that relationship has been irrevocably harmed.
01:25:55.980
When I learned about the exonerated five, when I learned about Sean Bell,
01:25:59.780
when I learned about Eric Garner, when I learned about Michael Brown,
01:26:02.280
and then in 2020, when I wrote these tweets, learning about the death of George Floyd,
01:26:08.100
and that was a moment where it felt as if the distance between these two ideals had never been further.
01:26:12.680
And in becoming an assembly member and serving and representing more than 100,000 people in Queens,
01:26:17.920
learning that to deliver justice means to also deliver safety.
01:26:20.680
And that means leading a city where you recognize the bravery of the men and women who joined the NYPD
01:26:27.640
It means representing the Muslims who were illegally surveilled in my district
01:26:31.060
and the black and brown New Yorkers who've been victims of police brutality.
01:26:34.360
So, Mr. Sliwa, you've been out there, you've been on the trains,
01:26:37.340
and I would like to know if you believe changes are needed of how officers are disciplined.
01:26:42.020
Let me just suggest, Zoran, what you've suggested...
01:26:50.440
Let me just suggest what you have proposed with this new police outrage unit
01:26:56.280
will endanger women and children in domestic violence situations.
01:27:01.140
I know I've been involved in so many of them with the Guardian Angel.
01:27:06.020
Number two, in dealing with emotionally disturbed persons that I have dealt with for all my years
01:27:12.060
as the Guardian Angels, you need trained professional police officers.
01:27:16.160
Yes, you can have mental health workers with them.
01:27:20.600
It was done before by the homeless outreach unit.
01:27:23.260
And the guy you thought was the best man, Bill de Blasio, disbanded them.
01:27:29.280
To be very clear, the Department of Community Safety is not about responding to calls of domestic violence.
01:27:34.420
We are speaking about mental health crisis and the homelessness crisis.
01:27:38.480
These are the focuses of the work that they will do.
01:27:40.420
We have other questions for that a little later in the debate.
01:27:42.540
But we want to just change the pace a little bit, candidates, switching gears to the high cost of living in New York City.
01:27:48.680
To kick us off, we have a few quick pocketbook questions that New Yorkers wrestle with daily.
01:27:53.460
So we want to know how much you spend a week on groceries.
01:28:27.080
Now that eggs are down to less than $4, though, my average spend every week is about $125, $150.
01:28:34.040
Do you carry credit card debt or do you pay it off every month?
01:28:45.460
And for the record, what is your monthly rent or mortgage, Mr. Sliwa?
01:28:54.720
Mr. Momdani, what is your monthly rent or mortgage?
01:28:59.420
He has a rent-stabilized apartment that a poor person is supposed to have.
01:29:10.120
We're going to talk a little bit more about the runaway rent in this city.
01:29:13.780
Mr. Momdani, you're pledging to freeze rent for nearly 1 million rent-stabilized apartments.
01:29:18.320
That really affects less than half of all rentals in this city.
01:29:21.900
What is your plan for those who aren't in stabilized apartments but are struggling to pay the rent?
01:29:27.580
Well, I'm proud to say that I, yes, will freeze the rent for more than 2 million rent-stabilized tenants.
01:29:31.840
And I will also build 200,000 truly affordable homes across the five boroughs over the next 10 years
01:29:38.080
to ensure that tenants, whether rent-stabilized or market rate, can actually have more housing
01:29:42.820
such that they are not being priced out of this city.
01:29:45.300
And finally, I'm also going to make it easier for the private sector to build housing in this city
01:29:50.220
because what we see today is that it's not labor, it's not materials,
01:29:54.360
it's the weight that is often costing so many, so much to actually build the housing we need in this city.
01:30:01.800
The cost of maintaining a building change year-to-year for landlords,
01:30:05.240
the Rent Guidelines Board is legally required to consider those costs when deciding whether to freeze rents.
01:30:10.780
So how can you promise a rent freeze today before ever seeing that data next year?
01:30:18.080
It's been data that's been overruled by mayors again and again.
01:30:21.280
The last Rent Guidelines Board study showed that profits were up 12% for landlords of those units.
01:30:27.520
They raised the rent, adding to more than 12% under Eric Adams' administration.
01:30:32.140
What I am speaking about is actually reflecting the needs of these New Yorkers and the state of the market today.
01:30:38.300
These are New Yorkers who have a median household income of $60,000.
01:30:41.680
We do not need to be pushing them further out of the city.
01:30:45.500
Aren't you saying in that answer that you are going to prejudge?
01:30:48.780
You will not have seen the data for next year and you're making a determination based on data you haven't seen.
01:30:54.080
I've seen the data year after year of the fact that salaries are stagnating, costs are up, New Yorkers can't actually afford their apartments.
01:31:01.820
And I will also take action to actually ensure that the landlords of those buildings can better handle their costs by taking on their insurance, their property taxes, and their water bills.
01:31:11.220
It is based on annual data and you haven't seen next year's data yet, but we're going to go to it more stuff.
01:31:13.360
Mr. Cuomo, I do have a question for you on this subject.
01:31:14.960
You have proposed something that you're calling Zoran's Law.
01:31:17.600
You think that Mr. Mamdani earns too much to live in his rent-stabilized apartment, though I should note that there are no income tests for rent-stabilized apartments.
01:31:26.440
But critics say your plan would force people to pay too much of their income towards the rent.
01:31:32.320
So if you think Mr. Mamdani is gaming the system, what about the other New Yorkers, thousands of them just like him, who earn similar salaries, who are living in similar apartments?
01:31:42.100
Okay, just to follow up on what Sally was saying, because she's right, this is not a new plan that the Assemblyman is talking about.
01:31:51.800
Bill de Blasio says the mayor can't say legally he's going to freeze the rent.
01:31:58.260
There are certain considerations that have to be looked at.
01:32:02.320
You can't say today what it's going to be in four years.
01:32:04.880
Also, Freeze the Rent only postpones the rent, because then you have to have an increase to cover the costs.
01:32:12.920
Otherwise, the building is going to go bankrupt.
01:32:15.200
And it does nothing for the majority of renters who aren't in these rent-stabilized units.
01:32:23.200
There's nothing for people in black-brown communities who are getting priced out.
01:32:27.940
I built affordable housing all across this nation.
01:32:30.620
I built affordable housing in this city when I was in my 20s.
01:32:35.680
I will get it done on the rent-stabilized units.
01:32:38.600
What I'm saying is those are the precious units, and we should keep them for the most rent burden.
01:32:48.660
Sorry, he invoked me for much of that question.
01:32:52.980
You know, you've heard it from Andrew Cuomo that the number one crisis in this city, the housing crisis,
01:32:59.440
He thinks you addressed this crisis by unleashing my landlord's ability to raise my rent.
01:33:04.480
If you think that the problem in this city is that my rent is too low, vote for him.
01:33:08.560
If you know the problem in this city is that your rent is too high, vote for me.
01:33:12.500
If I understand it correctly, Mr. Cuomo, your program, Zolan's law, would not evict Mr. Mamdano.
01:33:18.940
It would apply to people applying for apartments.
01:33:35.180
No, no, Mrs. Sliwa, Rosaria has a specific question for you on this.
01:33:37.640
Yeah, well, I wanted to talk about affordability and obviously address that issue.
01:33:41.560
So you've proposed, Mr. Sliwa, plans that would make a point of talking about the struggle of renters and property owners.
01:33:49.220
Describe your plan to help renters and landlords.
01:33:52.480
Well, first off, we have 6,000 available apartments that are mayor-controlled in NYCHA.
01:34:01.600
Then, we talk about senior citizens who are living here.
01:34:07.600
I'm concerned about the seniors, especially those that own homes.
01:34:11.400
If they're 65 and make less than $250,000, no property tax because the property tax is way too high.
01:34:19.160
We need to cut it in half to keep people who are here.
01:34:22.340
And then, in terms of rentals, we have affordable housing that can be built in these huge skyscrapers.
01:34:28.860
You see them all throughout Manhattan and in northern Brooklyn and in Long Island City,
01:34:33.320
which we have 25 Empire State buildings full of commercial space that will never be occupied for office space.
01:34:41.960
We should be converting them into affordable apartments.
01:34:49.060
I'm the only candidate here who's against the city of yes that would destroy residential neighborhoods.
01:34:54.160
I'm sorry to interrupt you because we have a programming moment right now.
01:34:56.640
We're about halfway through the mayoral debate.
01:34:59.300
Channel 4 and Telemundo 47 will return to regular programming.
01:35:03.560
And you can continue watching live on NBC New York, Telemundo 47's streaming and digital platforms,
01:35:28.940
That was kind of a natural point for us to transition.
01:35:30.980
And we want to talk now about transportation and getting around town.
01:35:34.940
And we have a few quick questions about how you get around town.
01:35:37.220
Show of hands, even though they're in their waning days, who has a MetroCard or maybe uses OmniPay?
01:35:45.420
MetroCard, I mean, I have one, but, you know, I know I'm hanging on to the last moment.
01:35:57.360
The only candidate who rides mass transit every day.
01:36:00.820
When you need to get somewhere fast and you can't take the train, do you hail a taxi?
01:36:08.840
As you know, I was shot in the back of a yellow cab in 1992 by the Gatti's and Gambino's.
01:36:15.980
If I have to, I Uber if I can't get there by mass transit.
01:36:19.120
What do you do, Mr. Mamdani, if you can't take the train?
01:36:32.680
Mr. Mamdani, this is a centerpiece of your campaign.
01:36:40.620
We will make buses free by replacing the revenue that the MTA currently gets from buses.
01:36:45.540
This is revenue that's around $700 million or so.
01:36:48.760
That's less money than Andrew Cuomo gave to Elon Musk in $959 million in tax credits when he was the governor.
01:36:54.340
And the reason that we will do so is that making buses free doesn't just provide economic relief, but also public safety.
01:36:59.780
Because what we've seen is that it decreases assaults on bus drivers by 38.9%.
01:37:04.740
New Yorkers deserve more than the slowest buses in the country.
01:37:07.980
I know that because I was on the M57 not too long ago, and its average speed is 4.9 miles an hour.
01:37:12.900
We're at time, though, but the question is how you'll make them free.
01:37:15.180
We will fund the revenue that would have otherwise been brought in from fares.
01:37:18.620
And that's something that we would do in partnership with Albany.
01:37:22.920
The first is to raise taxes on the top 1% of New Yorkers by 2%.
01:37:27.600
The second is to raise the state's top corporate tax rate to match that of New Jersey, which would raise $5 billion.
01:37:32.680
We're going to move along, but I just want to point out to viewers that Governor Hochul has opposed raising the income tax.
01:37:42.000
Because half the people don't pay their bus fare to begin with, Zoran.
01:37:50.800
If you have free bus fare, and the Citizens Budget Commission said just last year, 2024, a billion dollars of fare evasion in all different forms, this MTA system will collapse.
01:38:04.140
There's not enough money out there to make up for fare evasion.
01:38:08.580
If you don't pay your fare, they have fare programs for the poor and the indigent.
01:38:12.980
But everybody should be forced to pay their fare.
01:38:15.900
Mr. Cuomo, you had both praise and some criticism for Mr. Mondani's free bus pilots.
01:38:22.660
What's your plan to make subways and buses more affordable?
01:38:28.240
It costs about $700 million, just to give you an idea, that we only raise about $500 from congestion pricing.
01:38:39.260
They basically became mobile homeless gathering places.
01:38:45.120
What I say is free buses for working families who can't afford it and free subways for working families.
01:38:59.500
Mr. Mondani, can you just respond quickly on the point about the mobile homeless gathering places?
01:39:06.360
You know, this is something that we heard when we were fighting to make buses free in Albany
01:39:09.360
when we delivered the first fare-free bus lines in New York City history.
01:39:12.620
And what we saw is when we made one bus route free in each borough of New York City,
01:39:16.460
there was no increase in homelessness on those buses.
01:39:19.440
There was no increase in fare evasion in the surrounding area.
01:39:22.860
What there was was an increase in ridership of up to 38%.
01:39:28.480
and get a sense of how all of you would pay for your big ideas.
01:39:35.180
You've talked about free child care, city-run grocery stores.
01:39:38.120
So essentially, you're proposing about $10 billion in new spending.
01:39:42.360
And as you've indicated, you want to pay for it with tax increases.
01:39:45.320
But as Sally pointed out, Governor Hochul said no to raising income tax on millionaires.
01:39:49.440
So tell New Yorkers tonight how you're going to pay for all of this in one minute, if you can.
01:39:55.140
Look, a lot of people have called even my campaign a non-starter
01:39:58.960
And now I stand before you proud to be the Democratic nominee
01:40:01.860
who got the most votes in city primary history.
01:40:04.840
And I believe we will see the same thing with our push
01:40:10.760
and the most profitable corporations the fair amount that they should pay.
01:40:14.200
Now, there are those who will say that because it will be hard,
01:40:17.580
We saw what giving up looked like when Andrew Cuomo was the governor.
01:40:21.300
He gave up on fighting for working-class New Yorkers
01:40:23.640
and instead caved in to his billionaire donors.
01:40:25.740
And what did we get? We have the fastest and most frequent helicopter service to the Hamptons,
01:40:30.000
and we have the slowest and more expensive bus service across the five boroughs.
01:40:33.800
But again, Mr. Ramdani, I know Governor Hochul indicated this week there may be some open windows,
01:40:38.860
but more or less income tax on millionaires is off the table, according to the governor.
01:40:44.320
making buses fast and free costs about $700 million a year.
01:40:47.540
Making universal child care a reality costs about $5 or $6 billion a year.
01:40:51.280
If you raise the state's top corporate tax rate to match that of New Jersey,
01:40:57.860
Mr. Schubert, you're next, but I have a couple of follow-ups.
01:41:01.640
We have also put forward a plan to save money here in New York City
01:41:05.240
with a billion dollars in savings through procurement reform,
01:41:08.320
through following the Independent Budget Office's assessment
01:41:12.560
and in actually collecting the fines and fees from bad landlords across the city.
01:41:16.720
If you could find some of the funding, but not all of it,
01:41:21.280
What would be the first among equals that you would try to get done?
01:41:24.020
Well, freezing the rent doesn't require any fiscal infusion,
01:41:26.380
so that will be something we'll be pursuing immediately.
01:41:28.560
And universal child care after housing is the second cost.
01:41:32.380
Child care is the second cost pushing New Yorkers out of this city.
01:41:40.280
if you could get the money and funding elsewhere,
01:41:45.600
The most important thing is funding these agenda items.
01:41:54.940
Mr. Sliwa, you've been talking about cutting taxes and spending.
01:42:56.400
and they will be patrolling the old-fashioned way
01:43:02.320
where people want to see the visual protection,
01:43:18.880
because as governor, you've raised and cut taxes.
01:43:37.540
The assemblyman's whole plan is based on a myth.
01:43:42.860
Albany's going to raise taxes statewide on corporations,
01:43:46.020
but the money's only going to go to New York City.
01:43:50.180
It's not just that the governor wouldn't support it.
01:44:37.700
You've got to cut taxes for people to stay here.
01:45:11.500
Quick, David, I have a right to respond to that.
01:45:24.360
and some of them have still been making their way
01:45:44.340
I did ask the state controller's office this week.
01:45:47.820
I did ask the state controller's office this week.
01:46:05.200
We have to talk about quality of life in the city.
01:46:11.580
We start with a couple of questions about 3-1-1.
01:46:26.420
and I've spoken to New Yorkers time and time again
01:46:30.340
that they can track their Uber Eats block by block,
01:46:36.840
it's just a question of hoping and praying that they do.
01:46:41.680
All right, Mr. Sliwa, have you ever called 3-1-1?
01:46:54.080
The analytics are when the operators talk to you
01:46:58.720
Yes, I've called them many times and got no response.
01:47:02.020
Most citizens I talk to on the subways and streets
01:47:36.480
Wanted to know if you had a sense across five boroughs
01:47:38.840
what the top two categories of complaints were.
01:47:55.460
Mr. Cuomo, what do you think the top two complaints were?
01:48:04.820
Okay, so the answer is noise and illegal parking,
01:48:10.280
That's right, and let's talk about noise candidates
01:48:22.980
everything with the loud construction and workers outside.
01:48:26.200
So, Mr. Cuomo, as mayor, what can you do to help the city
01:48:30.980
that never sleeps get a little bit of rest, Mr. Cuomo?
01:48:35.160
Yeah, look, I think if the 3-1-1 system worked well,
01:48:47.380
I think we have to change the ethos in this city,
01:48:58.780
I think when we have public safety that's functional again,
01:49:06.420
I think they would be more cooperative than you think.
01:49:15.800
In the outer boroughs, I see problems all the time,
01:49:20.400
18-wheel tractor trailers, RVs parked everywhere.
01:49:38.200
So naturally, people are going to revert to 3-1-1.
01:49:47.780
And they believe if quality of life is diminished,
01:49:51.120
the next stop is sell your house and leave the city.
01:50:00.000
What we've seen is one of the biggest sources of noise
01:50:03.980
And with the implementation of congestion pricing,
01:50:12.160
that we have reduced congestion across the city.
01:50:14.240
And one of the ways is by making the slowest buses
01:50:29.660
which is already out of reach for one in five New Yorkers.
01:50:35.520
and we have the apprentice of congestion pricing.
01:50:38.780
I'm the only candidate who's opposed to congestion pricing.
01:50:49.940
about candidates going over there a lot of times.
01:50:55.120
We're going to move on to illegal parking plaques
01:51:04.440
parked illegally during the day in downtown Brooklyn,
01:51:19.560
Well, obviously placards have been abused consistently.
01:51:25.160
Not only that, you have people with fake license plates,
01:51:30.120
There's all violations against the Department of Transportation
01:51:33.340
rules and regulations of where you can park a vehicle.
01:51:52.120
This way, enforcement can take place because people are terrified
01:51:59.240
We have to showcase that accountability is true,
01:52:02.020
whether for New Yorkers who are just living in this city
01:52:06.060
And the violation of traffic laws are violations,
01:52:09.420
and to show that that accountability is something
01:52:23.420
and reissue only those that are bona fide, period, on day one.
01:52:33.200
if the Assemblyman's proposal for legalizing prostitution went through,
01:52:37.980
that would be terrible for the quality of life.
01:52:48.400
Not only have I never called for the legalization of prostitution,
01:52:53.580
and I also have never said anything about not enforcing misdemeanors.
01:52:57.240
This is just yet another figment of Andrew Cuomo's imagination.
01:53:00.560
The DSA, which you give part of your salary to,
01:53:17.360
The difference between myself and Andrew Cuomo,
01:53:20.840
is that there is no one that is actually telling me what to do
01:53:23.820
other than the 8.5 million people who call this city home.
01:53:26.620
If you want my policies, you'll find them on my website.
01:53:38.760
That was the law put forward by Jesse Tomlinson.
01:53:43.520
in East Elmer and Jackson Heights and Flushing.
01:54:01.180
where we know that prostitution has been an ongoing complaint.
01:54:12.940
especially around the very popular Roosevelt Avenue.
01:54:32.820
the exact same ones we've seen under Eric Adams.
01:54:35.700
My policy is to actually take on sex trafficking,
01:54:39.200
to have a zero tolerance for violence against women,
01:54:53.940
is something that actually leads to less safety.
03:23:30.440
cooperation with ice he will absolutely turn New
03:23:41.480
they were going through hotels they were getting
03:23:47.780
hotels all over the place and you're going to see
03:23:55.240
going to be this huge and by the way that's why
03:23:58.460
talked about Trump more than anything else during
03:24:01.460
the entire debate and why because they want they
03:24:05.040
know that that if Trump gets you know Trump still
03:24:08.500
president that they have this election they can
03:24:10.620
turn it into a referendum on Trump and then make
03:24:12.600
it be this you know thorn in the side of Donald
03:24:15.320
Trump the mayor of New York the mayor of Donald
03:24:17.480
Trump city refuses to agree with him refuses to
03:24:20.020
endorse him refuses to go along with ice etc etc you
03:24:23.100
know and they're going to deny the National Guard
03:24:25.820
they're going to have standoffs it's going to be I
03:24:28.200
could see a scenario where a Mondami you know mayoral
03:24:32.340
term mayoral tenure turns a lot of New York into the
03:24:37.860
it's going to be worse Jack it's going to be worse than
03:24:45.320
Portland is because you you already have massive
03:24:49.380
racial tensions and a scenario with within New York
03:24:55.220
that is far more far more of a hotbed for crime and
03:25:00.380
criminal activity you have significantly more people
03:25:05.600
obviously which always causes massive disruption
03:25:08.600
you have a historic you know New York police department
03:25:14.300
uh and fire department that has has relied on the backs
03:25:20.140
of multi-generation multi-generational talent that has
03:25:24.980
made that kept that city safe and guess what all those
03:25:28.280
people are going to probably finally make the decision to
03:25:30.760
leave and this is really again I cannot bring this back
03:25:33.860
enough is that a community is not a community built on just
03:25:38.320
ideas and looks and and and just values it's it's a culture that is sewn
03:25:46.480
together with heritage and again multiple generations of people
03:25:52.220
standing together to build something special and New York has existed and
03:25:57.600
worked for this many years because again you've had a lot of people that
03:26:01.680
have you know dedicated themselves to public service and I just don't see I I
03:26:07.520
cannot we've heard it from people I mean we've seen it from people they got an
03:26:11.460
injection of that post 9-11 9-11 caused people to turn their hearts back to the
03:26:17.740
city the difference between you know that that happening nearly 25 years ago after
03:26:25.020
next this next year and to where we are today is people's hearts are turning away
03:26:29.440
from the city you have coven where you have a candidate that's on stage who
03:26:35.140
literally killed had you know had people oversaw people dying within the city that
03:26:41.480
they were forced to die within the city because they wouldn't properly take care
03:26:46.600
of them they wouldn't institute policies that were you know both freedom loving and
03:26:52.360
then also you know using just you know cooler and letting letting cooler heads
03:26:57.180
prevail and you now have a candidate who's going to be become New York or New York City's mayor
03:27:02.520
who is going to radicalize the city in such a way that there's not going to be very many
03:27:10.380
people left that are going to keep that that culture together and so we're going to see just a
03:27:15.600
complete departure and and representation of what New York City looks like it's going to change
03:27:21.680
dramatically and drastically and there's going to be a lot of heartache and sadness uh in the in the
03:27:27.440
tri-state area for people to say well that's what New York City used to be or I remember how New York
03:27:33.120
City was and now look at it today and that's what the next 20 years is probably going to look like
03:27:38.500
uh because Momdani is just the beginning of this this is not this is not something that's going to
03:27:43.740
get corrected very quickly because the Democratic Socialists of America yeah I I back to what Cliff
03:27:50.820
said just on what what the reaction will be in in the country I feel like there should already be
03:27:57.100
a massive reaction to this because following the 2024 presidential election you would have thought
03:28:03.140
that the left would move a little less radical on their policies since the huge 80-20 issue of men
03:28:11.980
in women's bathrooms and other radical stances that they've taken lost them the presidency and the
03:28:17.480
senate etc and you would think that they would take less radical stances but they're not and you see Momdani
03:28:24.040
coming in with these crazy crazy stances but then on top of that what's really scary about this that I
03:28:31.760
think Republicans need to spend more time talking about is the fact that this is a municipal power
03:28:37.360
that he's threatening BDS against Israel and that he would arrest the leader of a foreign nation if he stepped
03:28:44.600
foot in New York City it since when is a municipal power acted in in this way and if this is the way Momdani
03:28:52.520
is going and this is the way the left is going in the Democratic Party what what is going to continue not just in
03:28:58.740
New York but across the country with with with candidates running for office across the country in their stances how are they
03:29:05.360
going to abuse their power and are they going to continue to move further and further left I just
03:29:10.640
think that not enough Republicans are really warning about the trajectory of this
03:29:16.280
Mikey let me make a plug I never get to make just real quick Jack yeah this is why local go for I want
03:29:23.340
to wrap uh I want to start rapping soon it's now this is why this goes Angelo's let me know this is why
03:29:30.060
local elections matter okay I've been trying to say this me and Tyler can debate this forever obviously
03:29:35.020
we got to do the big national races but local elections this mayoral race obviously it's not
03:29:40.780
that local it's a New York City mayor race but this is why Republicans need to adopt the strategy of the
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left which is building a bench building a minor leagues and understand that we need America first
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patriots across the country to run at the local level school board dog catcher I don't care what it is
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county-wide especially state level but if you want to really enact change these local races are the way
03:30:04.040
to do it because it takes less money it takes less of a grassroots but you're not dealing with the big
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money that you deal with when you run the federal races been dying to say this on Charlie's show for
03:30:14.760
probably two years but local races matter and I think tonight's debate shows you it has an outsized
03:30:20.360
impact and it helps you to build the bench for the future there you go Cliff where can people follow
03:30:26.960
you and get access to citizens alliance on x at Maloney we're running the PA chase again this year
03:30:34.640
and of course we've got the New Jersey chase just under three weeks left to try to elect Jack
03:30:39.640
Cittarelli want to thank turning point and all the partner groups out there that help us make it possible
03:30:44.160
amen Mikey working to follow you uh on x it's Michael underscore McCoy with two y's and then on
03:30:52.320
instagram mikey.mccoy crushing it on the gram I've been seeing that stuff insane traction there and
03:31:00.000
great content I love the um I just love all the video polls you have man it's like like endless
03:31:04.640
Charlie content and I love it it's so all the behind the scenes stuff videos that no one's ever seen
03:31:09.160
it's so cool Tyler Boyer yeah you can follow us at Tyler Boyer and then uh of course with our team
03:31:19.160
at tpaction uh it's tpaction underscore on on x but we need your help we can get involved right away
03:31:27.000
go to tpaction.com sign up become a member of our coalitions you can go to coalitions.com
03:31:33.160
where we're recruiting in every swing state we've got a lot of work to do this next year
03:31:39.480
we do but we've got a lot of work this weekend too because I don't know about you guys but I am so
03:31:43.880
excited for the no kings protest I'm gonna be out there I'm gonna be bringing my walker maybe my
03:31:51.640
wheelchair man it's gonna be it's gonna be so good I really hope by the way that'd be a good like Alex
03:31:57.880
Stein bit to just like dress up as like like remember when um uh Johnny Knoxville used to dress
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in like old like dress like an old man and then like he just walked go to the no kings protest
03:32:07.880
I should uh I sent my brothers uh into doing that this weekend or something I'm gonna be there
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of course I am Jack Posobiec you can follow me at Jack Posobiec and the show is Human Events Daily
03:32:17.800
we are live every day thank you so much for tuning in with us the Charlie Charlie always loved doing
03:32:23.560
these debate watches and debate recaps and so that's why we decided that uh we're gonna continue
03:32:28.840
the tradition and make sure that we do it tonight and so as always go out there and commit more thought crime