Rudderless

To the editor:

Marx wrote that history first occurs as a tragedy and the second time as a farce. For New Yorkers the tragedy was that a small number of Democratic voters in the 2021 mayoral primary cast their ballots for an incompetent and ethically challenged Brooklyn politician named Eric Adams, whose specialty was promoting himself. He narrowly won that primary and became mayor.

The farce is that three years later, Adams became the first standing New York City mayor to be indicted by a federal grand jury on corruption charges, with additional counts possible. A shocking number of his top aides and appointees are also under investigation by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District and the FBI. The mayor vehemently proclaims his innocence, and said there was a conspiracy against him by the Biden administration and the Justice Department, because he criticized the administration’s migrant policy (Trump agrees with him).

Governor Kathy Hochul, a politician with little vision and less courage, has been one of Adams’ biggest supporters. She has the power to remove him from office. She warned Adams to clean house, and told him he had to prove he could lead the city while under indictment. Hochul apparently hasn’t noticed that Adams has never been able to properly lead the city. Among many examples are a lack of police accountability, mismanagement of both the homeless crisis and the migrant crisis, endless chaos and violence on Rikers Island, and a refusal to carry out laws passed by the City Council. 

Eric Adams, whose repeated dog whistles of crime and race have been so divisive to our city, is desperately trying to hold onto his job in the way an infant desperately tries to hold onto her or his milk bottle. Take the bottle away and say adieu to this misbegotten mayor.

Howard Elterman