New York City’s embattled mayor continued to buck the Democratic Party line with a take World War II references and the “temperature.”
(Video: NYC Mayor’s Office)
Sunday at the Big Apple’s famed Madison Square Garden, former President Donald Trump was expected to be joined by VIPs and an estimated 20,000 supporters. During a briefing on the weeks of preparation, New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) decried the ongoing attempt to label the GOP leader as Adolf Hitler.
“I have had those terms hurled at me by some political leaders in the city — terms like Hitler and fascist — my answer is no,” Hizzoner said when asked if he believes Trump is a fascist. “I know what Hitler has done, and I know what a fascist regime looks like. I think, as I have called over and over again, that the level of conversation, I think we can all dial down the temperature.”
Disagreeing with any who suggested the Republican presidential nominee should be barred from rallying at the Garden, Adams went on, “This is America. This is New York, and I think it’s important that we allow individuals to exercise their right to get their message clear to New Yorkers. And our job as a city and as a Police Department is to make sure they can do that in a peaceful — in a peaceful way.”
As the race for the White House was entering its final days, Vice President Kamala Harris and her surrogates had piggybacked off claims from Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly to suggest that the president held a favorable opinion of the German dictator.
Like actor Michael Rapaport and others who had reminded about the antisemitism on college campuses that had been downplayed by many on the left, Adams cautioned about the impact rhetoric had on the safety of communities like the Jewish community in New York.
“I don’t think it’s fitting to anyone to state the former president is equal to being Hitler,” he added.
The mayor’s remarks came little more than a week after Trump had offered some kind words during a light roasting at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner pointing to the executive’s federal charges that included wire fraud and bribery, to which he had pled not guilty.
“Nine and a half months ago, I said, you know, he just said something bad about the administration. He’s gonna be indicted any moment. And guess what happened, but you’re gonna win. I think you’re gonna win. I know you’re gonna win, so good luck. I don’t like what they do,” said the president as he likened the lawfare to his own prosecutions. “Mr. Mayor, you’re peanuts compared to what they’ve done to me.”
“I know what it’s like to be persecuted by the DOJ for speaking out against open borders,” said Trump, suggesting Adams’ remarks on the border crisis had prompted legal backlash. “We were persecuted, Eric. I was persecuted, and so are you, Eric.”
As to Sunday’s rally, which is slated to feature former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani, UFC CEO Dana White, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, commentator Tucker Carlson, members of Trump’s family, his transition team and more, NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell explained that law enforcement had been coordinating for weeks on preparing for the event.
“You will see a…heavy uniform presence around the Garden,” he told the press Saturday, noting a perimeter would be cordoned off early Sunday morning. “You’ll see heavy weapons teams, counterterrorism, aviation…blocker vehicles. We are the best at what we do. We prepare for protests every day. We will have a very safe day tomorrow for all New Yorkers.”
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