Source: Politics<\/p>\n
With help from Shawn Ness<\/p>\n
Happening now:<\/span><\/p>\n Gov. Kathy Hochul knocks Trump on abortion rights. DAYS THE BUDGET IS LATE:<\/span> 9<\/p>\n HOCHUL TALKS ABORTION RIGHTS: Gov. Kathy Hochul continued her efforts this morning to help to keep President Joe Biden in the White House, targeting Donald Trump\u2019s recent comments about abortion rights.<\/p>\n \u201cHow do you know when Donald Trump is lying? When his lips are moving,\u201d Hochul quipped this morning<\/a> on MSNBC\u2019s Morning Joe.<\/p>\n The governor gave her first reaction to former President Donald Trump\u2019s announcement Monday that he supports leaving the issue<\/a> of abortion up to the states.<\/p>\n Hochul vowed on the morning show that Trump\u2019s announcement will be \u201ca jolt for the election\u201d and a win for Biden.<\/p>\n \u201cWe could say \u2018What day was the election really lost [for Trump]?’\u201d Hochul said. \u201cIt may just have been the day that the solar eclipse occurred.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul has increasingly taken on the role<\/a> of a Biden surrogate in recent months as she continues to trumpet a pro-Biden message on CNN and MSNBC. Her ascendant support of the president\u2019s reelection bid also comes as Mayor Eric Adams \u2014 the self-proclaimed \u201cBiden of Brooklyn” \u2014 has faded<\/a> from the president\u2019s embrace.<\/p>\n \u201cWe won’t know for sure exactly by what margins, but this is a big boost for Joe Biden,\u201d the state\u2019s first woman governor said of Trump’s abortion stance. \u201cTrump fell into this. He should have kept his mouth shut because now he’s antagonizing everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s Monday announcement suggests he won\u2019t pursue<\/a> a national abortion ban if elected, but the former president didn\u2019t rule out signing one, either. He also did not say where he stands on other efforts to limit access to the abortion pill, mifepristone.<\/p>\n Hochul\u2019s comments slamming Trump \u2014 she added that he\u2019s \u201cindicted himself in the eyes of women all over America\u201d \u2014 comes as New York\u2019s own version of the Equal Rights Amendment, which aims to enshrine reproductive rights<\/a> in the state, is on the ballot in November.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery state, the record is there,\u201d Hochul said. \u201cWhen people have a chance to voice their position on abortion, they stand with the women \u2014 unlike Donald Trump.\u201d \u2014 Jason Beeferman<\/p>\n SO LONG, BUT NOT FOR LONG: They\u2019re leaving town, but they\u2019re coming back.<\/p>\n Lawmakers won\u2019t be meeting Wednesday for Eid al-Fitr, a fast-breaking holiday celebrated at the end of Ramadan, amid a late state budget for the fiscal year that started April 1.<\/p>\n \u201cWe expect an extender to be passed on Thursday,\u201d Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins told reporters, adding that the extender will run until Tuesday of next week.<\/p>\n The Assembly, on the other hand, will meet on Friday week to pass the extender as the sides remain undecided over the $233 billion spending plan that includes measures to address the state\u2019s housing shortage and address retail theft.<\/p>\n After passing the extender on Thursday, Stewart-Cousins doesn\u2019t expect senators to return until the start of next week: \u201cWe are at the beginning of the end, but the end is hard.\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The leader has used that phrase before<\/a>. On April 19 2023, Stewart-Cousins said lawmakers were at “the beginning of the end\u201d of the budget process.<\/p>\n It took 13 days<\/a> from that point to final passage. This year, the sides are poised to recess starting April 18 for two weeks because of Passover \u2014 so a goal is to get a deal before then, but the days are ticking away toward meeting that goal. \u2014 Jason Beeferman<\/p>\n HOUSING LACK OF DEALS: As the budget is now nine days late, progressive groups are still protesting to get their wants included in the budget, including a deal to ensure affordable housing.<\/p>\n Eight protesters were arrested outside of the governor\u2019s office in the Capitol during a rally this afternoon.<\/p>\n \u201cEconomic and social mobility depends on a government, depends on leadership like [Assembly Speaker Carl] Heastie and [Senate Majority Leader] Andrea Stewart-Cousins to hold a powerful executive like Gov. Hochul, who’s moving out of step with the vast majority of New Yorkers, to hold her accountable,\u201d said Jawanza James Williams, a director at VOCAL New York.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need those two conferences, the Assembly and the Senate, to actually represent the people that put them there.\u201d<\/p>\n What does that mean? For them, it\u2019s getting the good cause eviction measure to protect tenant rights and the Housing Access Voucher program included in the state\u2019s budget in a bid to help fight homelessness.<\/p>\n They also want to tax the rich and large corporations.<\/p>\n Cea Weaver, the coalition director at Housing Justice for All, said that it seems that Hochul seems to be more willing to meet with real estate executives and campaign donors than renters.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we have been quite clear for months that we are not married to every crossed T or dotted I in our bill,\u201d said Weaver, who was among those arrested. \u2014 Shawn Ness<\/p>\n SKIRMISH SURPRISE: Mayor Eric Adams said he \u201cwould have never predicted\u201d how infrequently skirmishes occur on Randall\u2019s Island, where the city is sheltering about 3,000 migrants under conditions he called \u201cinhumane.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThree thousand people are placed into an environment \u2014 many of them are young \u2014 and told \u2018You can\u2019t do anything all day but sit there for the whole day,\u2019\u201d the mayor said today during an off-topic news conference. \u201cI\u2019m amazed at how well they\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Randall\u2019s Island has drawn headlines<\/a> in recent months for violence among the migrants sheltered there, and Adams in January promised a \u201ccomplete analysis\u201d of the site\u2019s safety precautions.<\/p>\n Today, he told reporters: \u201cEvidently, we\u2019re doing the right thing\u201d by implementing security measures like metal detectors and curfews.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not seeing skirmishes hop up all the time,\u201d Adams said. \u201cWe\u2019re seeing just the opposite. We\u2019re seeing people saying, \u2018We want to wait so we can finally get our crack at the American dream.\u2019\u201d \u2014 Irie Sentner<\/p>\n SILENT TREATMENT: Adams declined to answer multiple questions today related to revelations that federal authorities are looking into free flight upgrades<\/a> he accepted from Turkish Airlines and the city\u2019s retention of a celebrity defense lawyer to represent the mayor in a sexual harassment case.<\/p>\n On Friday, a report<\/a> in The New York Times indicated investigators from the FBI and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York are looking at whether a Turkish Airlines executive vaulted Adams to the highest passenger status offered by the carrier, which is partially owned by the Turkish government\u2019s sovereign wealth fund.<\/p>\n Additionally, City Hall has retained the services<\/a> of Alex Spiro, who has in the past represented Elon Musk, Jay-Z and Alec Baldwin, in a sexual harassment case.<\/p>\n Adams, who has not been accused of wrongdoing by prosecutors and is facing the sexual harassment case<\/a> in civil court, declined to go into details about either subject, saying that his legal team is handling the cases while he tends to the everyday business of governing.<\/p>\n \u201cI’ve said this over and over again \u2014 I follow the laws,\u201d Adams said at a press briefing when asked about details of the federal probe being publicized. <\/p>\n \u201cI have great attorneys. My job is to run the city. They are to run the review. I am pleased with my attorneys, what they\u2019re doing. And the process is going to take its course.\u201d \u2014 Joe Anuta<\/p>\n CAUCUS PUSHES ON ENERGY ISSUES: Ensuring affordability while taking bold steps to address the climate crisis<\/a> which disproportionately impacts many communities they represent is a priority for the NYS Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus.<\/p>\n Assemblymember Michaelle Solages, a Democrat from Nassau County and chair of the influential caucus, laid out some of the ways lawmakers could support those goals in an interview last month with Playbook.<\/p>\n The central question facing policymakers is how to fund the state\u2019s climate efforts while preventing unpalatable costs<\/a> for consumers.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are a lot of groups I see that are saying these laws are hurting New Yorkers. They’re costing too much. And it’s unfortunate because the cost of the climate crisis is already high in so many communities, including communities of color,\u201d Solages said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have high rates of asthma. When flooding happens, we can’t afford to rebuild, and so we get displaced. And so at the end of the day, the cost is so high. We need to ensure that we’re being smart about the transition, but also not afraid of being bold.\u201d<\/p>\n Solages said the caucus supports the Climate Change Superfund measure, which seeks to charge fossil fuel companies for historical emissions from the fuels they sold, and a low-carbon fuel standard for the transportation sector.<\/p>\n Some environmental justice groups oppose the clean fuel standard, questioning whether it would ensure emissions reduction quickly for the communities they advocate for.<\/p>\n Solages sees it as a beneficial policy for heavy-duty vehicles that will be on the roads for years to come with less impact on individual consumers.<\/p>\n \u201cIt won’t cost the ratepayers at the end of the day,\u201d Solages said. The low-carbon fuel standard in California has added to gas prices, although proponents argue there\u2019s not a significant correlation<\/a> between low-carbon fuel credit costs and gasoline costs.<\/p>\n The NY HEAT, the legislative measure to cap energy bills as a percent of income, would end subsidies for new gas hookups and expand the Public Service Commission\u2019s authority to decommission parts of the gas system, is also a caucus priority.<\/p>\n Solages said they\u2019re urging some type of compromise or resolution to get it passed. The issue hasn\u2019t yet been resolved in budget negotiations.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the time that we need to just urge our leadership to be brave about the climate crisis and look at ways that we can ensure that we are transitioning to electric, but also not creating a disadvantaged situation for the ratepayers,\u201d Solages said.<\/p>\n The caucus is also supportive of the $200 million for low-income ratepayers to help with utility bills. They also back more funding for electric school buses to help districts with the up-front expenses. \u2014 Marie J. French<\/p>\n \u2014 An appellate court rejected Trump\u2019s efforts to delay his hush-money trial. (POLITICO<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 The Inspector General\u2019s Office is investigating the Adirondack Park Agency. What they are looking for is not yet clear. (Times Union<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 A school in Brooklyn is experimenting with a 12-hour school day. (The New York Times<\/a>)<\/p>\n
\n Lawmakers leave, again, without a budget deal.
\n Randall\u2019s Island has been safe for migrants, Adams said.
\n Protesters arrested outside of Hochul\u2019s office.\u00a0 <\/p>\n