The Weekly Watchdog
Good morning! Welcome to the Weekly Watchdog. Only one major event spurred everything else this week, and we have your rundown and the subsequent fallout below. We’re sure you can guess what.
News Worth Clicking
| The News Eric Adams’ federal corruption charges dismissed City & State By Sahalie Donaldson |
Did you think we’d lead with anything else? Mayor Eric Adams’ charges were officially dropped last week with prejudice, meaning the federal government cannot revisit the indictment. The judge overseeing the case said the prosecutors’ withdrawal “smacks of a bargain: dismissal of the indictment in exchange for immigration policy concessions,” but did not stop their request. Yet the ruling does not change the fact that Mayor Adams put his personal self-interest ahead of the public interest, as CU Chair John Avlon remarked. Will voters take notice? |
| Inner circle investigations remain Multiple Probes Into Eric Adams’ Inner Circle Persist, Even as Mayor Escapes Prosecution The CITY By Greg Smith & Yoav Gonen |
While Mayor Adams may be off the hook, many of those once in his inner circle are not. The CITY has the rundown of investigations for all those that need a reminder, and with so many investigations ongoing, one can only wonder if one of those eleven people involved might throw another under the bus to save themselves. As the article states, this story is not over. |
| Adams the independent Adams to skip New York City’s Democratic primary, run for reelection on nonpartisan line Politico By Sally Goldenberg |
And less than 24 hours after his charges were dropped, Mayor Adams ditched the Democratic primary for Mayor and announced his run for reelection as an independent. The Mayor pointed to the corruption charges as the reason for the switch, saying the case suffocated his campaign and made it impossible for him to win the primary. At the very least, this will make the general election more interesting. Oh, wait, there’s more? |
| A five-way general election? Working Families Party Takes Steps to Run Mayoral Candidate in General Election The CITY By Gwynne Hogan |
Mayor Adams might not be the only losing Democratic primary candidate on your ballot in the general. The Working Families Party is preparing to run a candidate in case one of their four endorsed candidates does not win in June and a certain former Governor does. We’ve got a long way to go, but if such a scenario does come to fruition, your general election ballot may have five people: a Democrat, a Republican, a WFP nominee, and independents Eric Adams and Jim Walden. Chaos reigns!
Or maybe this system doesn’t make sense, and we should just switch to a version of non-partisan open primary that would narrow the general election to the top two candidates (regardless of party) instead. 🙃 |
| Thank you, Betsy! Betsy Gotbaum honored with lifetime achievement award at City & State event City & State By Jaylen Coaxum |
Citizens Union Executive Director, former Public Advocate, former Parks Commissioner, and all around phenomenal and beyond-accomplished human being Betsy Gotbaum stepped down from Citizens Union last week. Betsy has spent the last seven years leading us, and we are beyond grateful for everything she has done for the organization. No words can accurately summarize our appreciation. We wish you all the best, Betsy. |
| Ending with some fun See the brand-new subway map that the MTA will install on every train in the upcoming weeks TimeOut New York By Shaye Weaver |
Let’s end this edition of the Weekly Watchdog with something to distract us from political news: maps! The MTA released a new subway map this week. What do you think? Enjoy the marvel that is our subway system and enjoy your Sunday. See you next week. |