Source: Politics<\/p>\n
ALL EYES ON GRACIE: Mayor Zohran Mamdani is expected to sit down with President Donald Trump at Gracie Mansion this afternoon, their third in-person meeting in less than a year and the latest wrinkle in one of the strangest relationships in American politics.<\/p>\n
Since Mamdani\u2019s first, shockingly cordial meeting<\/a> with Trump at the White House last November, political observers have scratched their heads about the democratic socialist mayor playing nice<\/a> with the Republican president despite their deep disagreements on \u2026 just about everything. Ostensibly, Mamdani is putting his personal distaste for Trump aside and betting it\u2019s best for New York City to keep things cordial so as to avoid drawing the president\u2019s ire.<\/p>\n But as resistance to Trump remains animating for Democrats nationally ahead of November\u2019s midterms, Mamdani\u2019s strategy for engaging with him stands out.<\/p>\n Earlier today, Gov. Kathy Hochul made clear that she, for one, has no plans to meet with Trump while he\u2019s in New York. \u201cI speak to him on the phone whenever I need to,\u201d she told reporters in Manhattan.<\/p>\n Hochul, who\u2019s facing reelection in November and tends to directly criticize Trump more frequently than Mamdani, said it was her understanding that the mayor agreed to host the president at Gracie Mansion during a previous conversation at the White House.<\/p>\n \u201cThe mayor and [Trump] said that when he’s back in town again, he would go to Gracie Mansion,\u201d the governor said. \u201cI don’t have a Gracie Mansion to invite him to.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Hochul said there\u2019s an opportunity for Mamdani to use the Gracie confab to push Trump on releasing federal funding for New York, including for law enforcement<\/a>, that she said the president\u2019s administration has been withholding.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to continue fighting for what New York needs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s office wouldn\u2019t say who requested today\u2019s meeting or share specifics about the expected focus in advance, only saying the mayor will talk to Trump about \u201cissues affecting New York City.\u201d A Mamdani spokesperson said the mayor will elaborate on what was discussed at a post-meeting press conference that Trump isn\u2019t expected to attend.<\/p>\n After the appointment at Gracie, Trump is slated to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron before headlining a couple Republican fundraisers. By contrast, after his Trump t\u00eate-\u00e0-t\u00eate, Mamdani will have dinner with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who\u2019s in the city to headline a United Nations Charter event<\/a> this evening that will also feature pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, a person familiar with the plans who was granted anonymity to discuss them told Playbook.<\/p>\n The Queens-born Trump is in town ahead of his Tuesday address to the United Nations General Assembly.<\/p>\n Maintaining a relationship with Trump isn\u2019t without risk for Mamdani.<\/p>\n As Trump remains deeply unpopular amid the war in Iran and other controversies, some Democrats are privately questioning why the mayor sees a need to keep interacting with the president. But so far, Mamdani hasn\u2019t faced any significant pushback from his hard-left base over his engagements with Trump, with leaders of the local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America largely viewing it as the mayor acting in the city\u2019s best interests. \u2014 Chris Sommerfeldt and Madison Fernandez\u00a0<\/p>\n EYES ON AI: Hochul floated requiring safeguards like an artificial intelligence \u201ckill switch\u201d as part of state-level interventions to address the rapidly evolving technology.<\/p>\n During a Monday event in Manhattan rolling out next steps<\/a> for enacting the RAISE Act, New York\u2019s landmark AI safety law that is set to go into effect in January, the governor said she\u2019ll \u201clook closely at additional ways to build on\u201d the legislation \u2014 including AI kill switches \u201cif they’re deemed feasible and in the best interest of our state.\u201d<\/p>\n The governor in recent days has vowed to take additional AI-related actions<\/a> beyond the RAISE Act, but has not specified what that might look like. Her suggestion of a kill switch comes days after California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order<\/a> to explore such a requirement for AI companies\u2019 most-advanced models.<\/p>\n Some in the tech industry have argued implementing one is not technically feasible. Federal legislation to enact a kill switch requirement is currently stalled<\/a> in Congress.<\/p>\n When asked to expand on the prospect of requiring a kill switch, Hochul said that \u201call options are on the table,\u201d but wasn\u2019t making a commitment.<\/p>\n \u201cWe’re going to do the research and make the decisions that are thoughtful to protect New Yorkers,\u201d she said. \u201cWe’ll go as far as we need to to protect people of this state and ultimately this country in the absence of other leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n Read more from Madison Fernandez in POLITICO Pro<\/a>.<\/p>\n MORE BLAKEMAN MONEY: Billionaire former casino developer Steve Wynn has donated $1 million to the main super PAC supporting Republican Bruce Blakeman\u2019s gubernatorial bid, records filed with the state Board of Elections this morning show.<\/p>\n The committee, Strong and Safe New York, has now raised $5.3 million since July.<\/p>\n Wynn has been a top donor to national Republican causes for over a decade. His most recent large donations in New York came last year, when he gave $361,000 to the state GOP and $500,000 to a super PAC boosting Andrew Cuomo\u2019s mayoral bid. \u2014 Bill Mahoney<\/p>\n ENDORSEMENT CORNER: Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) endorsed GOP Rep. Mike Lawler in his reelection campaign in suburban New York, Golden wrote in an opinion<\/a> article published Monday.<\/p>\n Lawler is facing a tough reelection campaign against Democrat Cait Conley in one of the biggest House battlegrounds this November. The lawmakers have previously collaborated to advance the Northeast Lobsterman Protection Act, and are both members of the centrist Problem Solvers Caucus.<\/p>\n Golden, who is not running for reelection, was one of two House Democrats<\/a> to break with the party and twice vote in favor of the Republican legislative agenda earlier in September.<\/p>\n \u201cMike Lawler has been a true partner to me and a friend to fishing families he will never represent,\u201d Golden wrote. \u201cI strongly back him, and I hope voters send him back to work. Wherever you live, find the members who pass laws with the other party, and keep them.\u201d<\/p>\n House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the cross-aisle endorsement a \u201csmoke and mirrors ploy\u201d that \u201cwill do nothing to change the outcome of the race.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn desperation, [Lawler] is peddling an 11th hour endorsement from a retiring Congressmember who represents an out of town district more than 400 miles away,\u201d Jeffries said in a statement. \u201cMike Lawler is an unadulterated phony who has never shown bipartisan courage when it matters.\u201d<\/p>\n Read more from POLITICO\u2019s Elleiana Green<\/a>.<\/p>\n ON THE AIRWAVES: With fewer than 50 days to go before Election Day, House Democrats\u2019 main super PAC is making its first TV ad buy in support of Conley on Monday.<\/p>\n The House Majority PAC said it is reserving $1.2 million on cable in the Hudson Valley contest. (An additional $1.2 million is going toward fighting Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr.\u2019s re-election in New Jersey, which is also covered by the New York City media market.) HMP said earlier this year<\/a> that it didn\u2019t include the high-dollar NYC media market in its initial reservations because it was \u201cprioritiz[ing] markets where rates increase significantly.\u201d<\/p>\n Republicans have been largely outpacing Democrats in NY-17 on the ad spending front, thanks to significant buys from super PACs backed by the president and House leadership. From the beginning of September through Election Day, the GOP has placed $15 million on ads across broadcast, cable, CTV and digital platforms, according to ad tracker AdImpact.<\/p>\n The new HMP spend is the biggest from an outside Democratic group so far, but still leaves a large gap between the parties. Democrats have placed around $3 million on advertising in the period between September and Election Day, with the largest chunk coming from the Conley campaign. \u2014 Madison Fernandez<\/p>\n IN OTHER NEWS:<\/p>\n \u2014 JUDGES CASH IN: Brooklyn Democratic Party leaders have raked in $190,000 in contributions from judges and judicial candidates since 2012, raising some ethical and legal concerns. (New York Post<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 AFFORDABILITY AHEAD: Anthony Shorris, the mayor\u2019s new pick for the president of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, laid out a vision for solving the city\u2019s affordability crisis that goes beyond Mamdani\u2019s vision for five city-owned grocery stores. (The New York Times<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 BUY NOW, PAY LATER: The Mamdani administration is pushing Albany for tougher \u2018buy now, pay later\u2019 regulation, as many New Yorkers use the plans to pay for basic essentials, sinking deeper into debt. (amNY<\/a>)<\/p>\n Missed this morning\u2019s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here<\/a>.<\/p>\nFrom the Capitol<\/h3>\n
FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL<\/h3>\n
IN OTHER NEWS<\/h3>\n