| | | | |  | | By Jason Beeferman, Nick Reisman, Emily Ngo and Jeff Coltin | Presented by Healthcare Education Project | | 
Mazi Pilip, the GOP-backed candidate for NY-03, speaks to constituents in Great Neck at a December "campaign kick-off" event. | Jason Beeferman/POLITICO | NEW YORK MINUTE: The winter storm pummeling the state with heavy rains and high winds could bring flooding and power outages to some corners and crimp the morning commute. “Mother Nature is gonna throw everything at us,” Mayor Eric Adams told 1010 WINS Tuesday night. New York City has a flood watch in effect until noon. “Even just a couple inches of rain can be treacherous,” Gov. Kathy Hochul told Spectrum News, warning of flooding in areas including the Hudson Valley and Mohawk Valley. PILIP SPEAKS: George Santos’ former Long Island district is nearly 1,700 miles away from the U.S.-Mexico border and largely removed from New York City’s migrant crisis. But Mazi Melesa Pilip, the Nassau County GOP pick to replace Santos, is focusing on border security, making heated accusations about Democrats. She also emphasizes her unique biography: An Ethiopian-born Orthodox Jew who served in the Israeli Defense Forces before migrating to the U.S. “President Biden, Tom Suozzi, Governor Hochul, they all (are) welcoming them here without no plan,” Pilip said during a speech in Great Neck last month. “They are trying to secure the future election. The way to do it? Let’s open our borders.” Speaking with Playbook after the event, Pilip previewed how she will portray former Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi ahead of their faceoff in a Feb. 13 special election. Pilip — an enrolled Democrat who nevertheless flipped a legislative seat red in Nassau County in 2021 — has avoided the press. She was rushed out of her campaign launch event and tried to snub Playbook at her Great Neck speech, but eventually acquiesced to an interview at the urging of a campaign volunteer. The following interview, coming days after Playbook published a one-on-one with Suozzi, has been edited for length and clarity. You mentioned in your speech that the flow of migrants is something Democrats are welcoming, or even arranging, so that they can have more Democratic voters. What did you mean by that? President Biden, Governor Hochul, the Squad — whoever [is] responsible for the open border policy — is absolutely risking the American people right now. Millions [are] coming here to this country, nobody’s checking them. We don’t know if it’s criminals, terrorists, and the amount of drugs coming all the way here. Do you think the Democrats let migrants in because they vote blue? They have some interest. Tell me, why you will bring them here? If you’re not wanting to have them to integrate to society, why you will do that? And what about the American people? They voted for you. It’s national security; it’s not a joke. You have previously declined to reveal if you’ve voted for Donald Trump. Could you explain why you won’t share that? I’m trying to focus [on] my election [and] the future elections. I’m not going to talk about what happened two years ago. What about abortion? I know you’re against a national abortion ban, but is there a certain week – six weeks, for example – where you think it’s too soon for abortion? As a mother, I am pro-life. I’m not going to risk women’s health. ... A lot of mothers, a lot of women, they don’t even know when we are pregnant. That’s five or six weeks. But as I said, I’m not going to support a national abortion ban. The Jewish people here in Great Neck tend to resonate with you when you speak about supporting Israel, but do you think people in Massapequa and other parts of the district will resonate with that issue strongly enough for you to make it a centerpiece of your campaign? First, it’s not a centerpiece, just to be clear. I care about the American people here. The issues that we are facing every single day: the borders, the drugs, the migration. Nobody is really doing their job or checking them. I’m talking about safety, defunding the police, letting criminals go out within 30, 40 minutes after they get arrested. Today, a drug dealer can sell drugs to somebody outside, the police will do their job, they’re gonna take them in, within 40 minutes that drug dealer is out selling another drug. —Jason Beeferman IT’S WEDNESDAY. Got news? Send it our way: Jeff Coltin, Emily Ngo and Nick Reisman.
| | | | A message from Healthcare Education Project: All New Yorkers deserve equal access to quality healthcare, no matter their income or ZIP code. Yet today, Medicaid pays New York’s hospitals 30% less than the actual cost of care. Medicaid underpayments have already caused deep cuts to mental health services and maternity care. It’s an injustice. Families just want care and fear that this crisis could force their hospital to close. Albany: It’s time to step up and end the Medicaid funding crisis. | | | WHERE’S KATHY? In Albany and New York City with no public schedule. WHERE’S ERIC? Attending Dr. John Flateau’s funeral service, appearing on WCNY’s “The Capitol Pressroom” at 11:00 a.m. and, lastly, appearing live on CBS 2 News at 5 p.m. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Quoting the philosopher Taylor Swift, she reminds us that ‘everybody here was someone else before.’” — Gov. Kathy Hochul in her 2024 SOTS remarks.
|  | ABOVE THE FOLD | | | | 
Mayor Eric Adams attended Gov. Kathy Hochul's 2024 State of the State address in Albany on Tuesday. He called Hochul a "good partner." | Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office | ADAMS IN ALBANY: Mayor Adams insisted he was happy to be in Albany for Hochul’s State of the State address. No, really. “I love Albany,” Adams, a former member of the state Senate, told reporters. “I miss the nostalgia of up here. I don’t get to come here often.” Adams appeared at the Capitol building on Tuesday with a retinue of his legislative allies, including Democrats Jenifer Rajkumar and Eddie Gibbs in the state Assembly and Kevin Parker and James Sanders in the state Senate. (Adams is slated to appear at a fundraiser for Rajkumar tonight.) “I love like hell being in a foxhole with them as we fight these battles,” Adams said after attending Hochul’s speech. The mayor will have no shortage of battles to wage this year as he seeks a housing plan, funding support to help New York City address the migrant crisis and an extension of mayoral control of city schools. Adams was not disappointed that Hochul is leaving the specifics of her migrant plan to her budget address next week, calling Hochul “a good partner.” “Clearly, she’s understood the needs of New Yorkers, New York City residents,” he said. But it could be a rocky six months for the mayor as his campaign navigates a federal corruption probe and general skepticism from some Democrats in the Legislature who have the power to make or break his agenda. Still, Adams said his closed-door meetings with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins went well, talking to them about their families. Adams said he does not plan to alter his approach from prior years in getting what he wants from the state Capitol. But he is trying to widen his message: While in Albany, Adams gave an interview to Spectrum News 1’s Capital Tonight, which airs in upstate markets. “Up here, if you respect the process, the process will respect you,” he said. “I’m going to respect the process.” — Nick Reisman
| | CITY HALL: THE LATEST | | | | 
A woman who emigrated from Venezuela speaks with City Comptroller Brad Lander about her eviction from the Row Hotel. | Emily Ngo/POLITICO | MOVED AROUND: It was a day of shuffling around for many migrant families Tuesday in New York City, about 500 of whom were evacuated from the Floyd Bennett Field shelter in Brooklyn before a massive storm set in and about 40 of whom were turned out from The Row hotel in Manhattan because the 60-day limit on their stays was up. The temporary relocation of about 1,900 people from Floyd Bennett Field to Madison High School — where the mayor said they’ll “ride this out” — was condemned by a broad spectrum of critics from the Legal Aid Society to GOP City Councilmember Inna Vernikov. They, of course, had differing arguments. (And Madison students have remote learning today.) Meanwhile, City Comptroller Brad Lander said he’s launching an investigation into how Adams is implementing the 60-day limits, citing the cruelty of evicting a pregnant woman he met. “I wish it were a shell game,” he said in response to a reporter’s question. “In a shell game, you’re underneath a roof.” Adams has sought to keep children from sleeping on the streets, and a spokesperson said families who reapply for shelter are expected to get new beds. They can stay there until their next notices expire. — Emily Ngo HOW DEEP IS YOUR CUT: Just 20 percent of the latest round of budget cuts from Adams’ administration will directly result in reduced services, per an analysis out today from the Citizens Budget Commission. The other 80 percent are more like paper cuts, explained by reestimates, funding shifts and cutting unfilled roles. As a whole, the Program to Eliminate the Gap enacted in the November plan reduces spending by about $2 billion a year. But another 5 percent PEG will be reflected in Adams’ preliminary budget next week, and the cuts may have a bigger effect on city services. “Low-hanging fruit was picked early,” CBC’s Julia Nagle wrote, “and it is now more challenging for agencies to find savings.’ — Jeff Coltin SAVE THE DATE: The Inner Circle Show announced the title of its annual parody musical: “Turks & Chaos.” It’ll be Saturday, April 20 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan, with a dress rehearsal the night before. More from the city: — The Department of Investigation found statistical manipulation and faulty record keeping within the Department of Homeless Services. (POLITICO) — Hochul is reupping her push for policies to spur housing in New York City, including reviving a controversial tax break known as 421-a. (POLITICO)
| | | | A message from Healthcare Education Project:   | | | | | NEW FROM PLANET ALBANY | | |  Gov. Kathy Hochul at the SUNY AI Symposium in October. Hochul vowed to overhaul reading instruction and increase enrollment at SUNY and CUNY schools at the 2024 State of the State. | Mike Groll/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul | EDUCATION BUDGET: Lawmakers and advocates are waiting to see more when it comes to education proposals in the governor’s State of the State address on Tuesday. Hochul proposed an overhaul of reading instruction, initiatives to boost enrollment at SUNY and CUNY, as well as mental health services and a water safety initiative. Assembly Higher Education Committee Chair Pat Fahy said she is excited about Hochul’s artificial intelligence initiative, but noted there is much to be seen. She is hoping to see the governor include an expansion of the state’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), and operating aid for both SUNY and CUNY. “So we’ve got to do TAP, we’ve got to get more operating aid, we’ve got a lot of work to do. But, we’re going to make it work,” Fahy said. State Sen. Kevin Parker said he would like to see funding allocated towards Downstate Medical, a safety-net hospital run by SUNY. He said it was expected that funding would be allocated in the 2023 budget, but a deal couldn’t be struck, so it will be a priority again this year. “Frankly, we have not properly held up our end of responsibility as it relates to funding,” Parker told Playbook. “We fought for it last year, I was given assurance that we were going to do that, and we never actually got there. We can’t do a budget this year, unless we properly fund Downstate.” The New York State School Board Association and New York State United Teachers both shared statements applauding the governor’s proposals for schools, particularly the mental health and literacy proposals. Alliance for Quality Education — an education advocacy group — said the governor’s proposals do not go far enough. “With federal aid expiring this year, we will need a much bigger investment from the state to fill the gap – and our children’s needs extend far beyond literacy alone,” Zakiyah Shaakir-Ansari, interim co-executive director for AQE, said. — Katelyn Cordero INDIGENOUS IMAGES TO GET REVIEW: Images of indigenous people at the state Capitol will be part of “a comprehensive review” under a proposal announced by Hochul in her State of the State agenda. Hochul’s plan for the review includes invited participation from each of the nine nations. “Unfortunately, offensive imagery and distasteful representations of populations in the art which adorns the Capitol can alienate visitors,” Hochul’s briefing book stated. “Indigenous peoples, in particular, are often depicted in artworks in a manner that reflects harmful racial stereotypes and glorifies violence against Indigenous peoples. Such depictions do not reflect the values of New York state.” It’s not the first time images in the Capitol have come under criticism. The Rev. Al Sharpton in 2017 criticized a battle scene depiction of the Confederate flag in the Capitol’s War Room on the second floor. – Nick Reisman More from Albany: — Hochul called for tools to crack down on hate crimes in New York. (POLITICO) — A lawsuit was dismissed by judge that would challenge minimum staffing requirements for New York nursing homes. (LoHud) — The federal judge on a case challenging congestion pricing recused himself following questions from a state senator on his ties to New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. (POLITICO Pro) — Healthcare organizations are lobbying Hochul’s administration to boost Medicaid reimbursement. (Times Union)
| | KEEPING UP WITH THE DELEGATION | | | 
A spokesperson for NY-03 Democrat Tom Suozzi called a National Republican Congressional Committee's attack on Suozzi "laughable." | John Minchillo/AP | WHAT ABOUT YOUR FRIENDS: The National Republican Congressional Committee this week attacked NY-03 candidate Tom Suozzi for … being in sync with other moderate Democrats. One NRCC missive called Suozzi and Adams “besties,” calling the pair “two peas in an incompetent pod.” (The then-representative did say in January 2022 that he was under consideration for a deputy mayor role.) Another email said Suozzi is “100% with Biden,” an NRCC spokesperson stating, “Joe Biden deserves Tom Suozzi but voters do not.” Ahead of the Feb. 13 special election for the seat vacated by George Santos, the NRCC seeks to tie Suozzi to the migrant crisis under Adams and Biden and inflation under the president. A Suozzi spokesperson called the attempt “laughable,” then accused his rival, Pilip, of offering only “vague talking points” from GOP bosses. “The people of Nassau and Queens know who Tom Suozzi is, why is she hiding who she is?” the spokesperson added. — Emily Ngo
| | NEW YORK STATE OF MIND | | |  Arrests were made at the site of the famed headquarters of the Jewish Chabad movement after students refused to allow construction workers to seal off an underground tunnel. | Bruce Schaff/AP | — Yeshiva students mounted a last stand against cops and construction crews called to fill in a tunnel used for illegal construction at the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters in Brooklyn. (AP) — Sloth Encounters, a Long Island business where people can pay $50 to pet, feed and hold sloths, was accused of abusing the animals after an undercover investigation. (Patch) — Over 50,000 customers were left without power Tuesday night when winds gusts exceeding 70 mph hit Western New York. (Buffalo News)
| | | | A message from Healthcare Education Project: Mental health services closed. Maternity wards shut. It’s happening across New York, and one of the reasons is that Medicaid underfunds hospital care by 30%. Hospitals and caregivers give all of their patients 100%, each and every day. But if Albany doesn’t fix Medicaid underpayments to hospitals, the crisis will get worse – some hospitals may not survive.
Albany can end this injustice: Stop Medicaid underpayments and help hospitals stay open. The federal government will pay more than half the cost of closing the Medicaid funding gap, so it’s a savings for New York. Albany: It’s time to step up and end the Medicaid funding crisis now. All New Yorkers need equal access to quality healthcare, no matter their income or ZIP code. | | | | | SOCIAL DATA | | GOV. DAVID SHREDDERSON: Ex-Gov. Paterson played electric guitar at The War Room Tavern in Albany Monday night, as Playbook scooped last week. (Videos, via Morgan McKay and Bernadette Hogan) SPOTTED: AG Tish James, Former Rep. Carolyn Maloney, City Hall’s Tiffany Raspberry and Diane Savino, Nassau’s Jay Jacobs, Suffolk’s Ed Romaine, State Sen. John Liu, former Sen. Malcolm Smith and Assembly Members Brian Cunningham, Harvey Epstein, Alex Bores, Eddie Gibbs and Al Taylor. The NEW YORK JEWS IN POLITICS group hosted a happy hour at The Dean NYC in Midtown on Monday. The event was put on by the group’s founders: Senior Jewish Liaison to the Mayor's Community Affairs Unit Moshe Davis… Deputy Director of Jewish Affairs for Hochul Eva Wyner… City Council Community Engagement Officer Pesach Osina… and NYCEDC’s VP of Media Relations Adrien Gardner Lesser. ALSO SPOTTED: Councilmember Eric Dinowitz, Forward political reporter Jacob Kornbluh, former CEO of JCRC Michael Miller, the Director of Events and Protocol for the mayor Jayson Littman, AIPAC’s Northeast Region Political Director Jason Koppel, New York City Council Deputy Press Secretary Mara Davis and Adams’ Deputy Chief of Staff Menashe Shapiro. — Jason Beeferman BIRTHDAYS: Jared Kushner … Beth Fouhy … NBC’s Freddie Tunnard … Morgan Finkelstein … Robert Burns … Ajit Pai … Katherine Afzal … Lauren Coape-Arnold … Luke Johnson
| | YOUR NEW YORK NUMBER OF THE DAY | | | | 125th Hochul wants to extend the Second Avenue Subway west down 125th Street, through the heart of Harlem. The proposal in her State of the State would mean three more stops, beyond the three planned stops heading north from 96th that haven’t been built yet. | | | | | | | 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 | | | | |
