The felony conviction of former President Donald Trump, a bombshell in national politics, has caused more of a ripple in New York City’s own political scene.
Thursday’s 34-count conviction, delivered in a Lower Manhattan courthouse, was cheered by the city’s overwhelmingly Democratic political class. Many, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, said the result proved that “No one is above the law.”
Mayor Eric Adams, a conservative Democrat in some respects, had a notably subdued response. In a statement released about three hours after the verdict, Adams said simply that “the criminal justice process must be respected,” promising that police would respond to any large-scale protests and not mentioning Trump by name.
Other state Democratic leaders, perhaps mindful of President Joe Biden’s restrained response to the verdict, largely avoided gloating as well — Gov. Kathy Hochul and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand repeated the mantra that Trump was not above the law. Rank-and-file lawmakers enjoyed more freedom to brag — like Queens State Assemblywoman Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, who tweeted, “Stormy Daniels for the win!”
A more forceful opinion came from Randy Mastro, the veteran lawyer and former City Hall official under Rudy Giuliani whom Adams wants to appoint as his next top lawyer — a choice the City Council opposes. Mastro, who must persuade lawmakers that he is sufficiently distant from his onetime Republican boss, released his own statement Friday morning that blasted Trump as a “convicted felon” and called on him to withdraw from the presidential race.
“Our democracy once again faces an existential crisis because of Donald Trump,” said Mastro, who issued his statement in his capacity as chair of the good-government group Citizens Union.
Some took the opportunity to heap praise on Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg. Bragg, elected by Manhattan voters in 2021, had a rocky start to his tenure after critics argued against his plans to limit prison sentences for certain crimes — but is now riding high on the successful prosecution.
“HUGE win for [Bragg], who faced down death threats and political attacks for doing his job,” wrote NY1 anchor and political commentator Errol Louis in a post on X. Richard Fife, a political strategist who helped lead Bragg’s 2021 campaign, called Bragg “a courageous, smart public servant who does the right thing, the right way, and for the right reasons.”
“I did my job,” Bragg said in a press conference following the verdict on Thursday. “Our job is to follow the facts and the law without fear or favor, and that’s what we did here.”
That assessment, of course, is not shared by Trump and his legions of supporters. The former president asserted the trial was “rigged” in a Friday morning press conference at Trump Tower that was replete with falsehoods. Trump supporters lined Fifth Avenue during his remarks, and a plane pulling a banner declaring that Trump “did nothing wrong” was reportedly seen flying over Manhattan’s West Side around the same time.
Nick Garber , 2024-05-31 21:18:10
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