| | | | |  | | By Emily Ngo, Jeff Coltin and Nick Reisman | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Shawn Ness DRINKS ON US: Come celebrate the end of session with POLITICO. We’re hosting a happy hour on Wednesday, May 29, at the Albany War Room Tavern. Join fellow New York insiders for drinks and hors d'oeuvres, meet our editorial team and learn more about our coverage of politics, policy and power in Albany. You can RSVP here.
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Many of New York's national representatives are upset over the International Criminal Court's pursuit of war crimes charges against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | Establishment Democrats responded with outrage Monday to the International Criminal Court’s decision to seek war crimes charges against both Israeli and Hamas leaders. And they seized on the announcement to remind the world, the country and their fractured party where they ultimately stand amid shifting public opinion: firmly with Israel. “There has never been and there can never be any equivalence between Israel’s right to defend itself against terror and Hamas’ barbarity,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declared from the Senate floor, where he had rebuked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu two months earlier for having “lost his way.” The international tribunal requested arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Hamas leader Yehiya Sinwar and several others for a multitude of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Israel-Hamas war, now in its seventh month, has divided the Democratic Party. Left-leaning, younger members readily condemn the Israeli government and reject U.S. financing of the suffering in Gaza. Moderate members have come to acknowledge the human toll while reiterating that U.S. support for its ally should be ironclad. President Joe Biden has recalibrated his response, calling for more humanitarian aid and a two-state solution. But, to him, the ICC decision is something that goes too far, something “outrageous.” Biden, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Ritchie Torres, Jerry Nadler and others were nearly lockstep in rejecting any comparison of Israel and Hamas. “The prosecutor’s equivalence of Israel with Hamas, a terrorist organization that rapes, murders and kidnaps innocent people, is absolutely disgraceful,” Gillibrand said in a statement. In a departure, albeit a muted one, progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in the Bronx that her role is to “cease U.S. funding for human rights abuses, war crimes and violations abroad.” “And [what] we’ve seen, even from this morning, with the ICC’s designation of both Sinwar and Netanyahu, is: This is happening, and it should not happen with U.S. resources,” she added. Farther north, the fraught primary between left-leaning Rep. Jamaal Bowman and the challenger on his political right, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, is a bellwether on war sentiment. “We don’t want our money to go towards bombs and war. We want it to go towards books and education and health care,” Bowman said Saturday in the Bronx. His campaign declined to comment Monday on the ICC announcement. Bowman’s surrogates have noted that he stood up for Palestinians from the jump and others have come around. Latimer is where party leaders are. “I support President Biden’s absolute rejection of the ICC’s claim of equivalence between the Israeli government and Hamas,” he said in a statement to Playbook. “It is an outrageous lie. The ICC’s actions only serve to undermine efforts to secure the return of hostages and create a lasting peace in the region.” — Emily Ngo IT’S TUESDAY: Got news? Send it our way: Jeff Coltin, Emily Ngo and Nick Reisman.
| | | | A message from Safer Roads For All: New York State has the potential to pave the way to a cleaner, safer, and more accessible future with autonomous vehicles. Using real-world data from over 7 million rider-only driving miles in 3 major cities, studies have shown that autonomous vehicles (AVs) can avoid injury-causing and fatal crashes better than human driver benchmarks. | | | WHERE’S KATHY? In Ireland and Albany with no public schedule. WHERE’S ERIC? Making an NYCERS-related announcement, holding media availability, going to PFNYC’s business leaders town hall, speaking at Haiti’s flag-raising ceremony, hosting a reception to celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and going on WHCR 90.3 FM’s Rhythm and Soul Radio. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “You don’t give me side-eye and you don’t roll your eyes.” — Justice Juan Merchan, admonishing witness Robert Costello on decorum and clearing the courtroom briefly in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial.
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The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York told the graduating class at Yale that the future was of "great uncertainty and tumult and tension.” | Ted Shaffrey/AP | CLOSING ARGUMENTS: U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said that lawyers were graduating into a period “of great uncertainty and tumult and tension” at a commencement address at Yale Law School Monday. “The currents of change are fiercer today than they have ever been in my lifetime,” he said. “The velocity is different. The volume is different. The rancor is different. The anxiety is different. The stakes are different.” It was a relatively rare public speech from one of the country’s top federal law enforcement officials — certainly, he speaks less than one of his predecessors, Preet Bharara. But Williams is a Yale alum, who started classes at the most selective law school in the country just three weeks after his sister died. “The law student who could barely get out of bed because of the pain would have taken in this scene and dismissed it as some sort of fever dream,” he said to the crowd in New Haven. Williams’ office has a wide caseload, but he’s gotten New Yorkers talking from the apparently ongoing investigation into Mayor Eric Adams’ campaign. The New York Times reported Monday that Adams’ aide Rana Abbasova, whose home was raided among others in November, is cooperating with the corruption investigation. Adams’ lawyer Brendan McGuire brushed it off, telling the Times that it was “not a new or meaningful development.” In fact, they believe she had been talking with the feds since the raid, six months ago. Williams, of course, didn’t talk about that case, or any cases, in the speech. But he did advise the graduates that “we have more than enough combatants. People who are hopelessly dug into their trenches, fighting to the bitter end. What we don’t have is enough healers. Enough peacemakers.” — Jeff Coltin
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Over 75 percent of parents with children approaching preschool age are demanding Mayor Eric Adams the 3,000 thousand seats they were promised. | Michael Loccisano/Getty Images | FR3K OUT: First in Playbook, more than 75 parents of would-be three-year-old preschool students sent a letter to Adams demanding the 3K seats they were promised — and that they didn’t get yet, despite his assurances. “Every child that wants a seat is going to have a seat,” Adams repeated Monday morning, which confused some parents who got rejection letters with the seemingly clear message: “Unfortunately, we are unable to offer your child a 3-K seat at this time.” A City Hall spokesperson admitted they messed up there, and that the language “did not fully convey all the seats still available to New York City students.” Parents should have gotten an updated letter saying there are still 9,000 open seats for free schooling citywide, and the city will work with them to find the nearest seat that works. That’s not good enough, since some seats are “unreasonably far from their homes,” the parents, organized by advocacy group New Yorkers United for Childcare, wrote. They’re calling for more funding, better outreach, and more seats close to where there’s demand.” — Jeff Coltin HIT THE BOOKS: City funding for libraries — and the $58 million cut Adams has proposed — may have gotten more public attention than any other budget issue this year, thanks in part to activists like Lauren Comito of Urban Librarians Unite, who has been canvassing outside libraries with a lifesize Adams cut-out, talking to an eager audience about losing services. “People don’t like clipboard people,” she told Playbook. “But collecting signatures for libraries is a completely different experience.” Comito and other book lovers — plus the city’s influential museums and cultural institutions — will plead for more money before a sympathetic City Council at the executive budget hearing for libraries and cultural affairs this morning. — Jeff Coltin More from the city: — Adams aide Rana Abbasova is cooperating with federal authorities in their investigation into the mayor’s ties to Turkey. (New York Times) — The mayor downplayed criticism by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo about a health issue at a NYCHA complex. (Daily News) — The convicted “Bling Bishop” who calls himself an Adams mentee was sent to federal jail while awaiting sentencing after talking about his case on his podcast called “Not Guilty.” (Gothamist)
| | | | A message from Safer Roads For All:   | | | | | NEW FROM PLANET ALBANY | | |  Some advocacy groups are trying to convince lawmakers to not approve of the NY Heat Act. | Hans Pennink/AP | FEELING THE HEAT: A last-minute push is underway to dissuade lawmakers from approving the NY HEAT Act, a measure that’s meant to align the state’s utility regulations with its climate goals of switching to cleaner and more renewable forms of fuel. If approved, the bill would end subsidies for new natural gas hookups and lead to a transition for neighborhoods to transition away from the fuel. But opposition to the HEAT Act underscores how difficult the energy transition in the coming years could be for regulators. Western New York-based businesses and labor unions — including the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters, Tops Friendly Markets and National Fuel — warned in a letter to Hochul and state lawmakers that passing the measure would create “a host of economic problems.” “This legislation is a direct threat to energy reliability and economic vitality, and we urge you to remain firm in your opposition,” the letter states. — Nick Reisman VAPE WASTE: A ban on flavored electronic vapor products has been in effect for the last four years in New York. But the trash tells a different story, and the tobacco industry has concerns. A study commissioned by Altria that collected 2,000 discarded e-vapor packs in New York City between February and March found the vast majority, more than 98 percent, were from China-based companies. The trash is meant to underscore a problem Altria has been trying to raise of companies evading the flavored vape ban by changing their names and packaging. The company has sued e-cigarette firms, alleging they don’t have permission to sell their products in New York. — Nick Reisman More from Albany: — State prison officials have been censoring the news for people behind bars. (NYS Focus) — Hochul visited her ancestral home in Ireland. (New York Times)
| | KEEPING UP WITH THE DELEGATION | | | 
Rep. Marc Molinaro believes Joy DaCosta Fasciglione's campaign for a House seat is an attempt to help his main challenger. | Mary Altaffer/AP | PATRIOT ACT: Joy DaCosta Fasciglione has an unusual way of running for a swing House seat. Her campaign doesn’t have an online presence — either on social media or a public-facing website. She lists a Bronx address as her home, according to an independent nominating petition, nowhere close to the Hudson Valley House district. But the candidate, who did not return emails seeking comment and a number associated with her quickly rang out, is petitioning her way onto the ballot under the “Patriot Party.” And it’s raised an alarm among Republicans, including freshman Rep. Marc Molinaro. His campaign believes DaCasto Fasciglione’s effort to get onto the ballot is a stalking horse bid to aid Democratic candidate Josh Riley. Molinaro in a statement to Playbook said the Patriot Party bid “looks like a fraud” and will “benefit Josh Riley’s campaign.” Keep in mind that Trump mused briefly about running a third-party presidential bid under the Patriot Party banner. A Riley spokesperson declined to comment. There’s also no evidence Riley is behind the Patriot Party. But it’s also worth noting how difficult it can be to get on the ballot as an independent candidate: 3,500 signatures on a petition are needed and are inevitably challenged. That means candidates usually have to file twice that amount — a costly and time-consuming process for even the most deep-pocketed of campaigns. — Nick Reisman More from Congress: — Alison Esposito is facing a complaint filed by a progressive group accusing the congressional candidate of misusing campaign funds to pay for a personal parking spot. (Times Union)
| | NEW YORK STATE OF MIND | | — A counter-demonstration to Trump’s South Bronx rally is being planned by Assemblymember Amanda Septimo and civil rights activist Kirsten John Foy. (New York Post) — Some parents in New York City are upset over the education department’s rules that allow transgender athletes to play on sports teams that match their gender identity. (New York Times) — Rep. Jamaal Bowman said the future of humanity rests on the shoulders of the DSA endorsing him. (New York Post)
| | | | A message from Safer Roads For All: Autonomous vehicles are never distracted, intoxicated, or tired. Whether from drowsy, distracted, or drunk driving, human error is to blame for many of the 1.36 million traffic collisions in the U.S. each year. Even on their best days, people are prone to making mistakes - and every New Yorker has been impacted in some way by car crashes. Deploying a framework to allow AV expansion in New York will have a life-saving impact in stopping the avoidable traffic deaths on our roads. | | | | | SOCIAL DATA | | Edited by Daniel Lippman OUT & ABOUT: The Jewish Community Relations Council of New York hosted its first gala under new CEO Mark Treyger Monday night at the Plaza in Manhattan. SPOTTED: Reps. Jerry Nadler and Mike Lawler; Comptrollers Brad Lander and Tom DiNapoli; Camille Joseph Varlack, Fabien Levy, Menashe Shapiro, Fred Kreisman, Moshe Davis and outgoing Joel Eisdorfer from the Mayor’s Office; BPs Donovan Richards and Mark Levine; Council Members Julie Menin Farah Louis and Mercedes Narcisse; Daniel Rosenthal, Wilfredo Lopez, Sam Weinberger, Jazmin Kay and George Arzt. MAKING MOVES: Legal tech company Bodhala founder Raj Goyle is the new board co-chair of 5BORO Institute. He’ll be welcomed at the spring gala tonight featuring First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Seneca Strategies’ Monica Klein … City & State’s Tom Allon … former state Sen. Nick Spano … Edgar Santana, executive deputy secretary to Hochul … election lawyer Paul Newell … Leslie Dubeck, general counsel in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office … Tusk Strategies’ Eric Soufer … Arthur Brooks … Rebecca Leber … JPMorgan Chase’s Ross Rattanasena … NewsNation’s Mike Viqueira … former Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) … Jeffrey Toobin … NBC’s Stacey Klein … Mosheh Oinounou … CNBC’s Steve Liesman … Time’s Jeffrey Kluger … Fred Frommer … Joshua Henne … Cordelia Hudson … (was Monday): Ellen Jaffee.
| | | | JOIN 5/22 FOR A TALK ON THE FUTURE OF TAXATION: With Trump-era tax breaks set to expire in 2025, whoever wins control of Congress, and the White House will have the ability to revamp the tax code and with it reshape the landscape for business and social policy. Join POLITICO on May 22 for an exploration of what is at stake in the November elections with our panel dissecting the ways presidential candidates and congressional leaders are proposing to reshape our tax rates and incentives. REGISTER 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 | | | | |
