MEET THE NEW BOSS: Eric Adams caves, won’t oppose bill to let non-citizens vote in NYC elections after 30 days’ residence.
Remember that this guy has loudly proclaimed himself the moderate new face of the Democratic Party, the pragmatist with the guts to tell the wokesters to pipe down. He was true to his brand after the City Council approved a bill last month allowing legal immigrants (green-card holders, DACA enrollees) to vote in all New York City elections so long as they’ve resided in the city for 30 days. Adams didn’t like that last part for understandable reasons. If you’re going to have a say in the political direction of your community, you should prove first that you have a long-term interest in it. Requiring citizenship to vote serves the same purpose, demanding a commitment of full allegiance to the United States for a say in shaping its policies.
Speculation began that Adams might try to block the new law, viewing it as an opportunity to establish his brand as a different kind of Democrat. After all, no major city in the United States allows non-citizens to vote in all municipal elections. Some smaller cities in blue states do, and San Francisco allows them to vote in school-board elections. It would be bizarre if the brash new centrist mayor of NYC let his hometown be the first to radically reimagine the civic requirements for democratic participation.
But now it’s happened. Last night came the announcement: Adams surrenders.
Between Adams and Soros-backed DA Alvin Bragg, I’m sure New Yorkers will appreciate what amounts to Bill DeBlasio’s third term. As John Podhoretz wrote last week, “Bragg is the DA in the most important borough in the most important city in the United States, and if he has his way, the 1974 movie ‘Death Wish’ will soon seem like today’s newscast rather than a piquant period piece.”