| | | | |  | | By Emily Ngo, Nick Reisman and Jeff Coltin | | Presented by |  | | | With Timmy Facciola
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John Mannion (right) flipped a contested House seat that includes Syracuse. | Angelina Katsanis/POLITICO | Congratulations, and welcome to the minority. The three Democrats who fought to successfully flip New York House seats this month are barreling into their second week of orientation today in Washington, where Republicans control the House, Senate and presidency. It’s trial by fire, or trial by GOP trifecta. In interviews with Playbook, Laura Gillen, John Mannion and Josh Riley said they’ve long understood the need to tamp down on hyperpartisanship. Democrats have limited leverage in a Trump era where Republicans are at all levers of power, but the newbies are trying to stay optimistic. “Speaker (Mike) Johnson talked about fostering a new sense of civility and respect across the aisle,” Gillen said. “And I think, gosh, if we could stick to that, it would really be great.” Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Democrats are in the midst of a “family conversation” about the need to focus on economic issues after their election drubbing. The GOP will have at least 218 seats next year, the Democrats at least 212 — and a handful of races remain undecided as of Sunday — a margin Jeffries has said is not exactly a mandate for Republicans. In New York, Gillen of Long Island unseated Rep. Anthony D’Esposito. Mannion upset Rep. Brandon Williams in the Syracuse area. And Riley, an upstater, defeated Rep. Marc Molinaro. Riley said he likes President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to end taxes on tips and cut taxes for seniors who get Social Security. But the representative-elect opposes a repeal of the CHIPS and Science Act, a move Johnson said he favored before backtracking. “I’ve always said if there are folks from either party who are interested in doing things that are going to be helpful for my district, I’m going to work with them,” Riley told Playbook. “And if they’re doing stuff that’s harmful, I don’t care what party they’re in, I’m going to stand up to them.” Riley has worked with both parties as a U.S. Senate attorney, Mannion represents a swing district in the state Senate and Gillen was supervisor of the Town of Hempstead with a GOP-dominated town board and plenty of hostility. She is primed for fights where they’re necessary, she said. “I do feel like the Town of Hempstead was a perfect training ground for coming and working when the other party is in charge,” Gillen said. Incoming House members from across the country gathered Friday on the Capitol steps for their freshman class photo. At this stage at least, it was pleasantries between the New York Dems and their GOP colleagues. “Both the speaker and the leader referenced the importance of getting to know each other personally because then you have a better chance of working with everybody,” Mannion told Playbook. “I feel great responsibility in doing that because I didn’t do this to make it worse. I did it to make it better.” — Emily Ngo HAPPY MONDAY: Got news? Send it our way: Jeff Coltin, Emily Ngo and Nick Reisman.
| | | | A message from Uber: Study Reveals Uber Drivers Make More than EMTs: NYC Uber drivers now earn an average of $52,900 annually after expenses, outpacing the salaries of many essential city employees, including EMTs and sanitation workers. Despite delivering vital services, these workers struggle with stagnant wages while Uber drivers have benefited from five TLC-mandated pay hikes since 2020. Read more on the wage disparity impacting NYC’s workforce. Learn More. | | | WHERE’S KATHY? In Albany with no public schedule. WHERE’S ERIC? Making a public safety- and infrastructure-related announcement and speaking at the 2024 Gracie Mansion Conservancy Gala. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I would like to see a chair that can be critical of the party and take a real in-depth look of where we’ve done things right and where we’ve failed and take action, even if it’s not popular. Not everything is puppies and rainbows.” — A New York DNC member granted anonymity to assess the party’s ailments. POLITICO reported that the race for chair is wide open. |  | ABOVE THE FOLD | | | 
President elect Donald Trump is the subject of many Democrats' ire, but not Eric Adams'. | Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun via AP | GSD AT UFC WITH DJT AT MSG: Mayor Eric Adams was spotted glad-handing with Trump at a Madison Square Garden UFC event over the weekend — his latest friendly interaction with the incoming commander in chief. A video posted to X shows Adams approach Trump’s ringside entourage — which included House Speaker Mike Johnson and Elon Musk — and huddle briefly with the soon-to-be president. City Hall told Playbook the mayor was passing by and the two exchanged pleasantries. They discussed how events like the evening of brawls at MSG were good for the city’s economy and tourism infrastructure. Adams’ warm greeting is in line with his long-standing posture toward Trump. The mayor resisted criticizing the president-elect, even as fellow Democrats blasted the Republican on the campaign trail. And in the wake of the GOP’s overwhelming Election Day victory, Adams has expressed optimism about working with new cabinet picks and has praised Musk’s government appointment to co-lead a new efficiency office. Adams’ light touch has concerned competitors running against him in the upcoming mayoral election. They’ve noted Trump will have the power to pardon the mayor should he be convicted in a federal criminal case. As Playbook has previously noted, there are many ways the future president could help sway the case — which he’s characterized as politically motivated — before a conviction. “If Mayor Adams wants New Yorkers to have confidence that he has their interests top of mind — and not his own — then he should announce today that he will not seek and would not accept a pardon from Donald Trump,” City Comptroller Brad Lander said at an event last week where he outlined the risks a Trump presidency poses to New York. City Hall has countered that the mayor’s posture is more advantageous to the city — and that criticisms of the nascent Trump administration are unhelpful. “While Mayor Adams attended this event in a private capacity, he has repeatedly made clear his commitment to collaborating with the incoming administration to improve the lives of New Yorkers,” City Hall spokesperson Kayla Mamelak Altus said in a statement. “Making sensational statements disavowing the president-elect may generate attention for a political campaign, but it is poor policy and serves no benefit to the people of this city.” — Joe Anuta
| | | | The lame duck session could reshape major policies before year's end. Get Inside Congress delivered daily to follow the final sprint of dealmaking on defense funding, AI regulation and disaster aid. Subscribe now. | | | | | | | CITY HALL: THE LATEST | | | | 
Mayor Eric Adams has pleaded not guilty and wants to finish up the case as early as possible. | Angelina Katsanis/POLITICO | ADAMS’ COURT DATE: Federal prosecutors aren’t saying no to Adams’ request to move up the start of his trial to April 1 — but they’re asking the judge for more time to consider his lawyer’s “novel” proposal to waive certain discovery rights in order to speed things up. Judge Dale Ho had scheduled the bribery and campaign finance trial for April 21, but Adams’ lawyer Alex Spiro asked last week to move it up three weeks and said he’d give up the opportunity to seek additional classified discovery materials to save time. Ho gave Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and his office until Friday to respond. But in a letter Friday, Williams’ team said they needed more time to determine a position since they believe a defendant waiving discovery of classified materials outside the context of a guilty plea is unprecedented. “The Government is working to determine whether the law permits the waiver proposed by Adams and, if so, the appropriate form for such a waiver,” Williams’ team wrote. Adams has pleaded not guilty and wants to finish up the case as early as possible before the scheduled June 24 Democratic primary for mayor. — Jeff Coltin FAMILY BUSINESS: Virginia Maloney, the daughter of former Rep. Carolyn Maloney, is officially launching her City Council campaign today, a month after Playbook first reported she was eyeing a seat on the east side of Manhattan. “The importance of public service was instilled in me from a young age by both my parents,” Virginia Maloney said in a statement. “Our City is headed in the wrong direction, and my love for my community is calling me to step up to continue the record of strong leadership from Councilmember Keith Powers.” Powers is term-limited, and the field is already crowded with well-funded contenders. Maloney is launching with the support of former Council Speaker Gifford Miller. Meanwhile, Assemblymember Eddie Gibbs has filed to run for City Council too, in the East Harlem and South Bronx seat now held by term-limited Council Member Diana Ayala. — Jeff Coltin COUNCIL OF YES?: City officials and housing groups will rally at City Hall today to drum up support for Mayor Adams’ sweeping housing plan ahead of a key City Council vote this week. The administration and the council are rushing to hash out a deal on the mayor’s “City of Yes” zoning proposal, which aims to boost housing construction across the city. And they have just days to wrap up negotiations, with the council’s land use committee slated to vote on the plan later this week. The plan, which has faced staunch pushback in suburban parts of the city, is backed by a broad swath of housing groups and labor unions that are hoping this last-minute show of support will help the proposal get through the council largely intact. Two additional unions — Laborers Local 79 and Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union Local 3 — are joining the coalition pushing the plan ahead of the crucial committee vote. “We must not allow the well-housed few to drown out the voices of the 80 percent of New Yorkers who support this proposal,” First Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer said in a statement. “For them, we must deliver the strongest possible plan that delivers the most possible housing.” — Janaki Chadha More from the city: — Trump’s SDNY pick might not be the kind of guy who would drop the case against Adams. (Gothamist) — Enrollment in New York City public schools effectively remained flat, with the 911,000 students comprising a 0.1 percent decrease from last year. ( POLITICO Pro) — How Trump’s plan to deport migrants might work, including in sanctuary cities like New York. (Newsday)
| | | | A message from Uber:   | | | | | NEW FROM PLANET ALBANY | | | 
Rep. Mike Lawler has made little secret of his plan to run for governor in 2026 when Gov. Kathy Hochul is due to seek a second full term. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | TOLL ROAD: Rep. Mike Lawler is not going to let congestion pricing drop out of the headlines. The potential Republican candidate for governor released a video from his House campaign that blasted Gov. Kathy Hochul after she moved last week to revive the controversial toll plan. Under the current iteration of the plan, drivers will be charged $9 during peak hours to enter Manhattan below 60th Street. That toll is less than the $15 surcharge initially planned — a decrease Hochul expects New Yorkers will appreciate. But Lawler, a suburban Hudson Valley Republican who was handily reelected to a second term, believes voters will view the toll far differently. “I don’t care what anybody says,” Lawler said in the video while behind the wheel of a car. “Charging folks a commuter tax on top of high tolls and high gasoline prices is absolutely idiotic.” It’s an ironic position for Hochul, who paused the $15 toll plan in June over concerns the program would hurt battleground Democratic House candidates. Now Hochul, whose favorable rating with voters has been in the basement for much of the year, could be the Democrat who suffers the most political fallout from congestion pricing. Lawler has made little secret of his plan to run for governor in 2026 when Hochul is due to seek a second full term. Congestion pricing is due to go into effect in early January, and House Republicans have vowed to rescind federal approval for the program. That could prematurely wipe out a potent issue for Republicans amid the growing Democratic anxiety about the party’s statewide prospects in 2026. But some Democrats are willing to go on the offense and have touted congestion pricing’s potential benefits. Money from the tolls is expected to be leveraged for a $15 billion bond that would be used for infrastructure improvements on the ramshackle mass transit system. Lawler wants to crack down on fare beating and in his video blasted the management of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. But Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie challenged Lawler in a back and forth on X over how to pay for MTA priorities. “I think the MTA capital plan has to be funded,” Heastie wrote . “I’m waiting with bated breath to see when you ask you[r] president and your speaker to help fund the lifeblood of the most important economy in the country.” — Nick Reisman FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Assemblymember Emily Gallagher took aim at the political strategy of Democrats like fellow Brooklynite, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, in a “dear colleagues” letter that warned against shifting to the right. Efforts to appeal to moderate suburban Republicans “has been a disaster for our party and must be abandoned,” the left-leaning lawmaker wrote in the letter sent last week and obtained by Playbook. Gallagher, who was not Playbook’s source for the letter, pointed to a 2016 quote from Schumer when he said, “For every blue-collar Democrat we lose in western Pennsylvania, we will pick up two moderate Republicans in the suburbs in Philadelphia.” Schumer spokesperson Angelo Roefaro responded, “That’s an ancient quote. Does not apply to the current times.” The memo is the latest example in a Democratic genre of trying to assess why so many working-class voters broke for Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris.
Gallagher cited Harris’ support for Israel’s post-Oct. 7 military actions as well as depressed Democratic turnout on Election Day. She believes Democrats should reject “the Republican frame on core issues” and demonstrate beneficial results to voters. “We must offer an alternative vision, with its own villains and explanations that are distinct from those offered by Republicans,” she said. Republicans next year will control the White House and both chambers of Congress. But voters endorsed the status quo in Albany: Only a handful of incumbents lost their seats, and Democrats will return with their large majorities in the Senate and Assembly intact. New York Democrats who successfully won battleground House races learned a different lesson than what Gallagher is preaching: Moderation is key to winning over voters. Victorious Democratic House candidates did not shy away from traditionally Republican issues, like calling for tougher border security measures. “We were talking to Trump voters in congressional races and we did see voters were willing to split tickets,” New York Democratic Chair Jay Jacobs said. “The problem is not just talking with voters; you’ve got to be speaking their language and you’ve got to be talking about solutions and issues that resonate with them.” — Nick Reisman More from Albany: — Playing nice is the new Trump resistance strategy for Democratic governors like Hochul. (POLITICO) — State officials from New York to Hawaii are clamoring to have their requests approved before the Trump administration — which is certain to have a very different view of Medicaid spending — takes over. (POLITICO Pro) — With fluoride skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead Health and Human Services pending, Hochul signed a measure to encourage access to fluoride treatments for kids. (CBS 6)
| | | | Policy change is coming—be the pro who saw it first. Access POLITICO Pro’s Issue Analysis series on what the transition means for agriculture, defense, health care, tech, and more. Strengthen your strategy. | | | | | | | KEEPING UP WITH THE DELEGATION | | |  This year, the path to the House majority ran through Rep. Hakeem Jeffries' home state. | Kent Nishimura/Getty Images | JEFFRIES ON PREDECESSOR: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s pointed criticisms of Democrats’ election performance have raised eyebrows — and led some in her party to send the reminder that Jeffries now leads the caucus. Unsurprisingly, Jeffries himself is staying out of the fray. “It’s an honor to stand on the shoulders of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, an incredibly consequential public servant in the history of America,” the minority leader told NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday. “At the same period of time, as House Democrats, we’re proud of the new leadership team.” After Pelosi told the New York Times that President Joe Biden should have gotten out of the race earlier, some House Democrats who were granted anonymity by Axios said she is disrespecting Jeffries. During this past summer’s DNC convention, the former speaker also appeared to blame Hochul for House Democrats’ midterm losses. This year, the path to the House majority ran through Jeffries and Pelosi’s home states of New York and California. New York Dems reversed their 2022 losses by flipping four seats between a February special election and this month’s races. California’s toss-up races have been tighter. As of Sunday, two had not yet been called, and Rep. Ken Calvert had fended off a Dem challenge in a marquee matchup. — Emily Ngo More from Congress: — Rep. Elise Stefanik and other VP rejects are still getting top jobs in Trump’s quickly forming administration. (POLITICO) — New York Dems seek to hold Trump to his SALT promise on the campaign trail. (Times Union) — EPA nominee and former Rep. Lee Zeldin has backed environmental causes, but not all environmentalists are convinced. (Newsday)
| | NEW YORK STATE OF MIND | | — How Trump’s rising popularity in New York — and everywhere else — exposed the Democratic Party’s break with reality. (New York magazine) — Staten Island leaders demanded Whoopi Goldberg apologize for falsely claiming a Big Apple bakery refused to serve her sweet treats because of her politics. (New York Post) — New York’s Planned Parenthood chapter is bracing for more budget strain after Trump and the new GOP-led Congress take power in January. (Gothamist)
| | | | A message from Uber: Study Shows Uber Drivers making over $52k while NYC Heroes Get Left Behind
A new study reveals a growing wage divide in New York City: Uber drivers are making an average of $52,900 a year after expenses, while city employees like EMTs and sanitation workers starting salaries are below $44,000. Since 2020, rideshare drivers have received five pay increases through TLC mandates while many frontline city workers face stagnant wages amid rising living costs. This gap underscores an evolving dynamic in NYC’s workforce, where gig workers see consistent earnings growth while essential city roles lag behind. This pay disparity is raising questions about the city’s priorities and the need for equitable wages in public service amidst the affordability crisis.
Read the full story to see how gig work earnings are reshaping NYC’s labor landscape. Learn More. | | | | | SOCIAL DATA | | Edited by Daniel Lippman WELCOME TO THE WORLD: Daniel Lippman, a White House and Washington reporter for POLITICO and former Playbook co-author, and Sophia Narrett, an artist who shows with Kohn Gallery and Perrotin, recently welcomed a baby girl. Pic OUT AND ABOUT: The Business Council for International Understanding hosted its annual Dwight D. Eisenhower Global Awards Gala at Cipriani Wall Street in New York on Thursday where the group honored H.E. Yasir O. Al-Rumayyan, governor of PIF and chairman of Saudi Aramco, Dominique Senequier, Ardian CEO and founder, and Marc Benioff, chair, CEO and co-founder of Salesforce. Speakers included Jane Fraser, Lim Chow Kiat, Arianna Huffington, Mukesh Ambani, Ruth Porat, Tony James, Peter Tichansky, and Sabastian Niles. SPOTTED: Ari Emanuel, Ronald Lauder, Arianna Huffington, Ray Dalio, Dina Powell McCormick, Joseph Konzelmann, Nick Khan, Nir Bar Dea, Travis Kalanick, Edward Felsenthal, Lawrence Stroll, Justin Smith, Michael Arougheti, Seifi Ghasemi, Slawomir Krupa, Ralph Schlosstein, Dara Khosrowshahi and Peter Rawlinson. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: State Sen. Patrick Gallivan … Assemblymember Mary Beth Walsh … NYT’s Sheryl Gay Stolberg … POLITICO’s Matt Wuerker, Hailey Fuchs and Heidi Przybyla … Megyn Kelly … former Rep. Tom Reed (R-N.Y.) … NBC’s Tom Namako and Morgan Radford … Eric Sayler … Girls Who Code’s Reshma Saujani … ... (WAS SUNDAY): Eugene Resnick of the MTA … Assemblymember Danny O’Donnell … Howard Dean … TPM’s David Kurtz … Mike DeFilippis of Rep. Nicole Malliotakis’ (R-N.Y.) office … FT’s Felicia Schwartz … Noah Oppenheim … MSNBC’s Lily Corvo … Lorne Michaels … ... (WAS SATURDAY): Assemblymember Maritza Davila ... Elizabeth Drew … CNN’s Fredreka Schouten … Zerlina Maxwell … Economic Innovation Group’s John Lettieri … Michael A. Levi … Caroline Emch Nordquist … Samir Paul … Jillian Rogers … (WAS FRIDAY): Carey Wolchok ... Perry Davis CORRECTION: NYC Council Member Alexa Avilés’ birthday is Jan. 15. Playbook used the wrong date in a recent edition. Missed Friday’s New York Playbook PM? We forgive you. Read it here. | | | | 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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