Hochul nudges Dems to the middle

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Jul 16, 2024 View in browser   By Nick Reisman Gov. Kathy Hochul has doubled-down on a tough-on-crime message as her party embraces a retreat to the middle in New York. | Don Pollard/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul OVER THE RIVER: New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez was found guilty on all 16 counts of fraud and bribery in his federal corruption trial. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who had largely stayed silent during Menendez’s legal woes, called on the New Jersey Democrat to quit: “In light of this guilty verdict, Senator Menendez must now do what is right for his constituents, the Senate, and our country, and resign.” ALL'S GOOD IN MODERATION: Rep. Tom Suozzi and Gov. Kathy Hochul are not just political enemies-turned-allies. The two Democrats represent a broader effort by the party in New York to inch back toward the center after years of gains by progressive candidates. “All you have to do is look at the results here in New York and across the country,” said Jason Elan, a Democratic consultant on Long Island who has worked for Hochul. “You are seeing moderates take back their territory. You’re seeing voters reject some of these extreme positions.” Hochul and Suozzi, former rivals for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, were on Long Island this morning to announce $50 million for law enforcement in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. The governor, who has pressed for measures rolling back the state’s controversial cashless bail law, used the occasion to rebuke calls from left-leaning candidates to cut funding for cops. “I’m investing in local police, I’m investing in county police, I’m investing in sheriffs,” she said. Democrats face an increasingly challenging political environment this year. Former President Donald Trump has rallied the GOP base following Saturday’s assassination attempt. House Republicans, including those defending pivotal seats on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley, are increasingly confident this election season. And some Democrats are worried deep blue New York is in danger of slipping away amid persistent voter concerns over the cost of living and the perception that crime remains high. The state will be pivotal for control of the narrowly divided House this year with as many as six seats in play. But Democratic leaders in New York can point to some successes in pushing the party back toward the middle. Suozzi, a moderate, reclaimed his Queens-Nassau County House seat in a February special election by focusing in large part on public safety and the migrant crisis. Centrist George Latimer, who ran on a pro-Israel platform, defeated Squad member Rep. Jamaal Bowman in a June primary. New York Democratic Chair Jay Jacobs also endorsed moderates in primaries, including John Avlon to run against Republican Rep. Nick LaLota in an eastern Long Island House seat. Republicans scoff at efforts by Democrats to move toward the middle.  “They want that narrative because that actually makes it seem like they care about issues like crime or a runaway border — things that are really topping the polls right now,” said Dave Catalfamo, a political consultant who is advising Rep. Marc Molinaro this year. “There’s nothing to suggest that’s real or sustainable.” Catalfamo said the centrist victories in New York this year were largely situational: Bowman had his own political baggage, and Suozzi is a well-known figure on Long Island. Hochul knows what it’s like to win in a Republican-dominated district. She did it when she was a county clerk who opposed Republican Medicare plans but also fought against driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants (the latter position she has since recanted). And candidates like Latimer and Suozzi can help Democrats across the state — especially those running in GOP-leaning areas. “Those are the kind of candidates we’ve always tried to run in the rural counties,” said Judith Hunter, chair of the Democratic Rural Conference. “Unfairly, downstate Democrats have been to a certain extent demonized in the rural political culture.” — Nick Reisman   Understand 2024’s big impacts with Pro’s extensive Campaign Races Dashboard, exclusive insights, and key coverage of federal- and state-level debates. Focus on policy. Learn more.     From the Capitol Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo's campaign has received over $1 million from the state in legal reimbursements. | AP CUOMO CASH: Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo was cut a $485,000 check from the state in January this year, bringing the total amount of taxpayer dollars paid to the Cuomo campaign to over $1 million, our colleague Bill Mahoney reported in POLITICO Pro on Monday. Under state law, candidates can spend their campaign dollars on legal defense, and if the cases don't result in convictions the state has to pay back the campaign in full. Cuomo was previously paid $565,000 by the state in early January, prior to the recent filing period. And thanks to interest payments, his campaign coffers are only growing. His account balance has grown from $7.8 million to $7.9 million as of January. — Jason Beeferman FROM CITY HALL Mayor Eric Adams defended his outgoing fire commissioner, and addressed whether sexism played a role in her leaving. | Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office. OUT OF THE FIRE, INTO THE FRYING PAN: Mayor Eric Adams meditated on sexism today, as he defended the early departure of Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh. “I want to get to a day in this city and in this country where, if a woman decides to do something else with her life, people don’t react by saying, “oh, you couldn’t cut it? It was too much for you? It was too hard for you?’” Adams said at a wide-ranging weekly press conference. “No. She wants to do something else with her life.” Adams has seen a number of top women appointees leave his administration under pressure, including from the NYPD and Law Department — and now the FDNY. Adams suggested there was sexism in the department, but there’s sexism everywhere — including in the media, he said to reporters. “Those -isms that existed for thousands of years won’t dissipate under my administration. I’m setting the right tone that we don’t accept those -isms to exist and we use internal mechanisms to correct them,” he said. Adams praised Kavanagh, saying she can stay in his administration as commissioner, or another role, as long as she wants. But he acknowledged she got backlash in the department — and suggested he’s gotten similar backlash from journalists. “I’m still paying for the fact that I told you guys you don’t have enough diversity in media,” he said, with a laugh. “Don’t think I don’t know that.” — Jeff Coltin IN OTHER NEWS... — BUMPING BEZOS: New York ranks as one of the top states in tax breaks given to Amazon. (Investigative Post) — ADAMS’ APPLE: Big Apple Mayor Eric Adams is dominating his early opponents in fundraising. (POLITICO) — LIGHT GREEN: New York’s Green Amendment is supposed to guarantee the right to a “healthful environment,” but activists say it’s not being enforced. (Inside Climate News) Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? 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