Eric Adams no habla español

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Aug 14, 2023 View in browser   By Emily Ngo, Nick Reisman, Jeff Coltin and Hajah Bah New York City Mayor Eric Adams marches in the 41st annual National Dominican Day Parade in Manhattan on Sunday, August 13, 2023. | Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office Mayor Eric Adams’ Spanish is … no bueno. “Mi casa, su casa,” Adams responded a couple months ago when asked if he speaks Spanish. “Poquito,” he said more recently when Playbook asked how his lessons are going. It can be argued that Bill de Blasio and Mike Bloomberg didn’t speak Spanish either. But they definitely tried as part of their outreach. There’s a case for embracing the primary language of many newly arrived migrants as well as a huge swath of Latino New Yorkers who’ve been here for much longer. “To be able to reach them directly without the filter of translation is just so much more effective,” said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, whose fluency allows him to conduct about five to 10 Spanish-language news interviews each week. There’s a case also for relying on surrogates and just continuously showing up. “We don’t need someone who’s going to come and say a few words. We need someone who’s going to be present here,” City Council Member Francisco Moya said. “I like the way the mayor communicates with our community,” Rep. Adriano Espaillat said. “He’s real.” At Ecuadorian and Dominican heritage celebrations last week, Adams was mobbed by attendees clamoring for selfies with him. They didn’t seem to mind that his Spanish was limited to “Viva, [insert country here]!” Spanish-language journalists said it’s a bonus if an elected official is bilingual, but they’re used to compensating if he or she isn’t. “There’s a disconnect with someone like the mayor because he does not speak the language,” said Mariela Salgado, a veteran news correspondent now with Univision. “We have to make sure we’re the connection, the bridge.” De Blasio and Bloomberg made Spanish-language news dissemination a near-daily exercise. De Blasio gave summaries of his announcements in Spanish, however cringe-inducingly. Bloomberg’s Spanish was so stilted it inspired the El Bloombito parody account. Adams’ spokesperson noted that the mayor conducts regular interviews with ethnic news media. But in English. Why doesn’t the mayor make more of an attempt at Spanish? “He wants to project unflappability,” said Debralee Santos, editor with the bilingual Manhattan Times and Bronx Free Press. But, she said, “the affinity shown for a community is manifest in many different ways.” HAPPY MONDAY. Got news? Send it our way: Jeff Coltin, Emily Ngo and Nick Reisman. WHERE’S KATHY? In New York City and Albany with no immediate schedule. WHERE’S ERIC? Delivering remarks at DSNY graduation and promotion ceremony, making an appointment-related announcement at City Hall and delivering remarks at flag-raising ceremony for South Korea at Bowling Green. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “He agreed and informed me they will not send any additional persons to Erie County at this time. We also discussed the need for a new and improved security plan” — Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz about Adams after two sexual assault incidents involving asylum-seekers in Erie County.   A NEW PODCAST FROM POLITICO: Our new POLITICO Tech podcast is your daily download on the disruption that technology is bringing to politics and policy around the world. From AI and the metaverse to disinformation and cybersecurity, POLITICO Tech explores how today’s technology is shaping our world — and driving the policy decisions, innovations and industries that will matter tomorrow. SUBSCRIBE AND START LISTENING TODAY.     ABOVE THE FOLD New York Gov. Kathy Hochul speaks to reporters about end of session legislative bills and a swearing-in ceremony, in Albany, N.Y., June 7, 2023. | Hans Pennink/AP Photo HOCHUL’S FUNDRAISING CONTINUES — Fresh off raising $4.5 million during the first half of the year, Gov. Kathy Hochul is back on the donor circuit — this time with the monied summer set in the Hamptons. Hochul’s campaign will hold a fundraiser on Thursday in Sag Harbor with tickets that range from a minimum $500 for the cocktail reception to the donor maximum $18,000 for the more exclusive dinner portion of the evening, according to an invitation for the event obtained by Playbook. Hochul over the last two years has proven to be an adept fundraiser even as donation limits have been lowered along with the creation of a new system of public financing for campaigns. There has also been criticism, too, of Hochul’s campaign receiving donations from contributors who do business with the state. With three years to go until the next election, Hochul’s campaign in July reported $4.3 million in cash on hand. She’s also raised $1.5 million for the state Democratic Committee during the first six months of 2023, her campaign reported. —Nick Reisman WHAT CITY HALL IS READING The TikTok app logo is pictured. | Kiichiro Sato, File/AP Photo TIKTOK? OFF THE CLOCK — Mayor Adams’ administration is banning TikTok from government phones and computers, citing cybersecurity risks of the Chinese-owned video app. The directive, which hasn’t been previously reported, came down Friday afternoon from the city’s chief information security officer. New York City is relatively late on this. President Joe Biden signed a law banning TikTok on federal government devices late last year, and New York state did the same for almost all employees in 2020. Adams’ office doesn’t have its own TikTok page, but agencies like the NYPD and FDNY do. — Jeff Coltin More from the city: — Judge ‘Permanently’ Bans Medicare Advantage Switch for City Retirees (The City) — Rebecca Weiner, the NYPD’s new deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism, “is the rare top police executive who does not have close personal ties to Mayor Eric Adams.” (The New York Times) — Adams says federal barriers on work authorization for asylum seekers are “anti-American” (Gothamist)   DON’T MISS POLITICO’S TECH & AI SUMMIT: America’s ability to lead and champion emerging innovations in technology like generative AI will shape our industries, manufacturing base and future economy. Do we have the right policies in place to secure that future? How will the U.S. retain its status as the global tech leader? Join POLITICO on Sept. 27 for our Tech & AI Summit to hear what the public and private sectors need to do to sharpen our competitive edge amidst rising global competitors and rapidly evolving disruptive technologies. REGISTER HERE.     WHAT ALBANY'S READING BLACK MARKET CRACKDOWN — Convenience stores in New York are urging state officials to use the proceeds of a pending tax increase on cigarettes to better fund enforcement of illegal flavored vape products as well as cigarettes sold on the black market. The New York Association of Convenience Stores had opposed the $1 per-pack tax increase on cigarettes, which was included in the final budget agreement this May. But with the tax increase set to take effect on Sept. 1, the group is pushing Hochul, along with health and tax officials, to dedicate the money to addressing what they have maintained remains a problem for convenience store owners in the form of an unchecked illegal market. “With this additional tax on legitimate retailers, now is the time to take enforcement seriously, crack down on criminals seeking to flaunt the laws and sell to kids and double down on the anti-underage smoking education programs that have been proven to work,” said Kent Sopris, the group’s president. —Nick Reisman More from Albany: — Hochul personally asked Biden administration officials to let the state house migrants at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, but the feds are refusing (The New York Post) — State lawmakers next year may try to address a dentist shortage with a model that’s long been opposed by the profession. (Times Union) — Cannabis business owners rallied before a hearing for a lawsuit that has led to a temporary ban on new cannabis licenses. (LoHud) — A restoration of power for the independent watchdog at the state Board of Elections is being sought by lawmakers and good-government advocates. (Newsday) AROUND NEW YORK — 911 dispatchers for the NYPD are being made to work back-to-back shifts, putting in 80 hours a week on the stressful job (Gothamist) — Some Democrats are sounding a lot like their Republican opponents in City Council races when they talk about asylum-seekers (The City) — SUNY Fredonia is fighting to keep a professor off campus after controversial comments about pedophilia (Buffalo News) — Drones are flying over the Rockaways after the recent shark attack (New York Times) SOCIAL DATA BY DANIEL LIPPMAN HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rob Flaherty … Eric Wohlschlegel … NYT’s Adam Goldman … Boris Epshteyn … Edelman’s Jere Sullivan … Gabe Chaleff … (was Sunday): Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen … White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre … CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham … Sarah Huckabee Sanders … Jeremy Bash of Beacon Global Strategies … Grace Davis of Rep. Nick Langworthy’s (R-N.Y.) office … Addy Baird … Molly Henneberg … BlackRock’s Allison Lessne … Andrew Malkin … AP’s Kelly Daschle ... Bloomberg’s Joanna Ossinger ... Elizabeth (Whipple) Keneally … Chris Dhanaraj … Queens County clerk Audrey I. Pheffer ... Michael Landau ... Matthew Weiss ... Jodie Singer …  … (was Saturday): George Soros … HuffPost’s Dave Jamieson … Treasury’s Liz Hipple … CNN’s Kyle Blaine … Angela Kuefler of Global Strategy Group … CBS’ Jericka Duncan … Kelley McCormick … Melanie Sheppard of EY … Mike Kelleher … Pfizer’s Stephen Claeys ... Michael Holtzman … Deborah Colitti … Jeffrey Kontulis … William Rubinstein ... Anya Hoerburger … (was Friday): Doris Feder ... Elizabeth Holtzman (h/ts Jewish Insider) MEDIAWATCH — Ben Kochman starts on Monday at the New York Post as senior courts reporter, covering the Trump legal saga, Manhattan and Brooklyn federal courts, as well as top criminal cases across the city. He most recently was senior cybersecurity reporter at Law360 and is an alum of the New York Daily News. IN MEMORIAM — “Joan Kaplan Davidson, Philanthropist Who Championed New York, Dies at 96,” by Enid Nemy in NYT: “As president of a foundation established by her father, she focused her grant making on issues related to the city’s architecture, design and quality of life.” WHAT THE HAMPTONS ARE READING — “What $500 Buys You at the Most Popular Hamptons Restaurants,” by Kat Odell in Bloomberg: “From $70 lobster salad to $150 steak, the cost of food and drinks at dining rooms, markets and bars on the East End.” Real Estate Jackie O.’s summer home in East Hampton could have been yours — for $52 million (Real Deal)   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Ottawa Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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