Politics
Former aide suing Eric Adams joins Mamdani administration
DAYS THE BUDGET IS LATE: 20
BACK AT CITY HALL: Hassan Naveed, who was fired as New York City’s hate crimes prevention chief in 2024, is back in the municipal ranks — even as he continues to sue the city and the former mayor over allegations that his termination stemmed from religious-based discrimination.
As of this morning, Naveed is the new chief of staff to Deputy Mayor for Community Safety Renita Francois. That makes him the first high-profile addition to Francois’ team since Mayor Zohran Mamdani tapped her in March for the newly-created post, which comes with oversight of Mamdani’s signature Office of Community Safety.
Naveed, who also served on Mamdani’s transition team, declined to comment on his new gig.
But Naveed’s lawyer, Luna Droubi, confirmed to Playbook today that her client is continuing to pursue his lawsuit against former Mayor Eric Adams, the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice and two employees in that unit over allegations that Naveed was terminated as the city’s executive director of hate crimes prevention in April 2024 because of his Muslim faith.
So far, the city Law Department has represented Adams, the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice and the two employees against Naveed’s suit. At least one of the two named employees remains in city government, records show.
Naveed’s return to City Hall creates a potentially messy dynamic, in which he’s now working for the same government — and alongside at least one of the same government officials — he’s continuing to sue. The awkward situation is arguably heightened by the fact that Mamdani’s Law Department is continuing to provide Adams and the other defendants with taxpayer-funded legal representation as they continue to contest Naveed’s claims.
A spokesperson for Mamdani confirmed this afternoon that Naveed is back in city government, but said Naveed will need to recuse himself from any matters related to issues raised in his lawsuit. The spokesperson also said the Law Department is in the process of reviewing whether Naveed’s case can be resolved and if Adams and the other defendants are entitled to taxpayer-funded representation.
“Hassan Naveed brings deep experience across the core issues at the heart of the Office of Community Safety’s work,” the spokesperson, Sam Raskin, said. “That experience will be essential as we build a more coordinated, whole-of-government approach to public safety and mental health that ensures our systems respond to New Yorkers’ needs with urgency and dignity.”
Since Mamdani took office, the Law Department has already moved to strip Adams of taxpayer-funded legal representation against a civil lawsuit accusing him of sexually assaulting a transit police colleague in 1993. Adams has denied wrongdoing in the assault case as well as in Naveed’s lawsuit.
There does not appear to be any city laws barring Naveed from continuing his suit against Adams while in city service.
While declining to comment on Naveed’s specific case due to confidentiality protocols, Carolyn Miller, executive director of the city Conflicts of Interest Board, said public servants are generally only prohibited from acting as “an attorney or counsel against the interests of the city in any litigation to which the city is a party.”
“As a general matter, a public servant is not prohibited from seeking redress against the city for wrongs allegedly caused by the city,” said Miller. “For example, if I believe that I have been the victim of a wrongful arrest by an NYPD officer or medical malpractice by a Health + Hospitals physician, the conflicts of interest law does not prohibit me from pursuing those claims.”
Todd Shapiro, a spokesperson for Adams, said the former mayor “does not comment on pending litigation.”
“That said, throughout his tenure, Mayor Adams maintained a strong and consistent record of standing up for religious freedom and protecting all communities from hate and discrimination,” Shapiro said. “His administration made historic investments in hate crime prevention and worked closely with diverse faith-based communities across New York City to ensure every New Yorker felt safe and respected.”
Naveed’s religious-based discrimination suit, which was filed in October 2025 and asks for monetary damages, alleges he was “singled out” for discrimination by Adams and members of his staff after Hamas militants killed some 1,200 people and took hundreds more hostage during the Oct. 7, 2023 terror attack in Israel.
For instance, the suit charges that Naveed confronted Adams in mid-October 2023 about social media posts from some of the then-mayor’s staffers that Naveed considered “anti-Muslim, anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian.” According to the suit, Adams dismissed Naveed’s concerns and told him that Muslims in New York City were experiencing hate because they had failed to adequately condemn Hamas after the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, which prompted Israel to launch a war in Gaza that has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians.
Adams also told Naveed that pro-Palestinian demonstrations playing out in the city at the time were akin to “Klu [sic] Klux Klan protests,” according to the suit.
Naveed’s suit says he was ultimately fired as a result of the alleged anti-Muslim sentiment inside Adams’ administration. Adams spokesperson Kayla Mamelak denied that last year and said Naveed was terminated for “poor job performance.”
A former Adams administration official, granted anonymity for fear of legal retaliation, said Mamdani is making a poor hire because Naveed “was bad at his last job.”
“He completely ignored segments of the city and he never reached out to anyone,” the former official said. — Chris Sommerfeldt
From the Capitol
GOP BACKS BLAKEMAN BUCKS: Republicans in the state Legislature have introduced a bill that would force New York to let GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman access $3.5 million in public campaign matching funds.
Blakeman was booted from the program after a partisan vote by the Public Campaign Finance Board last month for failing to fill out a nonexistent form identifying his running mate. The new measure from Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt and Assembly Minority Leader Ed Ra, announced Monday, would give their fellow Republican additional time to rectify any paperwork infirmities.
“My [Democratic] colleagues say they are for free and fair elections. They can take the bill; they can take it from me. I’d remove my name from it, and I’d be happy to vote for it,” Ortt said. “If they don’t do it, when they talk about free and fair elections, they are full of shit.”
Read more from Bill Mahoney in Blue Light News Pro.
BUDGET CRAWL: The state’s tax-and-spend plan is yet to be resolved as New York lawmakers Monday approved their fifth stopgap measure since the budget was due nearly three weeks ago.
Gov. Kathy Hochul in Buffalo earlier in the day reiterated to reporters she is seeking changes to car insurance laws that have become a key sticking point in the talks. And the governor restated her desire to reach a deal on a package of protections for undocumented immigrants, which may be included in a final budget deal.
Read more from Blue Light News Pro’s Nick Reisman.
FROM CITY HALL
BAILOUT FROM ALBANY?: Mamdani’s tenant protection czar Cea Weaver urged attendees at a housing panel today to turn their attention to the now weeks-late state budget.
“I would really encourage everybody — anyone who has Kathy Hochul’s phone number — feel free to call her and ask her to give us some more money. That would be great,” Weaver, formerly a prominent tenant activist, said to some chuckles. “Or the president, for that matter”
Weaver, head of the mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants, and housing commissioner Dina Levy joined the non-profit Urban Homesteading Assistance Board for a conference exploring “social housing,” a broad term for efforts to insulate housing from private market forces by keeping units permanently affordable and community-controlled. UHAB organized the conference with the Parsons School of Design.
Weaver laid out the city’s fiscal strain in frank terms, as Mamdani has sought to do in recent months.
“We’re not making it up when we say there’s no money for X, Y, Z thing,” Weaver said. “The budget problems that our city is facing are extraordinarily real … That is scary, and it means that we’re going to have less flexibility to do the things that we all really want to do. But the state budget is not over yet.”
She continued, “So anything that we can do to join together in a fight for more resources from Albany is going to be really important to being able to achieve the things that we want to achieve.” — Janaki Chadha
FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
AND THEN THERE WAS ONE: The Democratic field to take on Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis appears to have narrowed to one, after union electrician Allison Ziogas filed a certificate of declination with the city Board of Elections on Monday morning.
Ziogas’ apparent decision to drop out leaves Mike DeCillis, a former NYPD officer, as the only Democratic challenger for what’s certain to be an uphill battle in a district that President Donald Trump won by 24 points in 2024.
The New York Times reported that Ziogas, who appeared to be the early frontrunner in the primary, was ending her bid because of unspecified health issues. DeCillis wrote on social media that he is “sorry to hear about her health issues and we wish her the best.”
Democrats unsuccessfully tried to redraw the seat, which covers all of Staten Island and part of Brooklyn, to make it more competitive, but that effort was blocked by the Supreme Court. However, some still saw opportunity there, given recent Democratic overperformances across the country and Trump’s unpopular policies. Republicans are adamant that the seat is not in play — and Ziogas dropping out is likely to put a damper on Democrats’ optimism.
Ziogas, who entered the race in March with the help of Morris Katz, a key Mamdani strategist, quickly received an endorsement from the Staten Island Democratic Party. After she declared her candidacy, the first Democrat to enter the race, educator Troy McGhie, dropped his bid and endorsed her. Ziogas outraised DeCillis $85,000 to $32,000 in the first quarter — both paltry hauls compared to Malliotakis’ $580,000 raised.
Ziogas’ campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Read more from Madison Fernandez and Chris Sommerfeldt in Blue Light News Pro.
IN OTHER NEWS
— SUDDENLY SOCIALIST: An ex-cop Assembly candidate who for years led a group that bashed socialists and boosted the GOP now praises Mamdani and lauds the DSA. (New York Post)
— UNDER DOG?: Internal polls from democratic primary candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier show incumbent Democrat Rep. Adriano Espaillat is leading by 42% in New York’s 13th congressional district with the DSA challenger trailing by 28%. (THE CITY)
— RETURN POLICY: Hochul wants the Trump administration to refund an estimated $13.5 billion in tariff payments to New Yorkers, as Monday marks the first day for importers to claim refunds following a Supreme Court ruling that struck down the import tax. (NY 1)
— CUOMO CLEARED: The U.S. Supreme court declined to take up a lawsuit from relatives of nursing home patients who died of Covid-19. (Times Union)
Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here.
Ted Cruz on his 2028 lane, JD Vance and the GOP’s future
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DALLAS — Top Republican lawmakers had no idea President Donald Trump was going to promise $5,000 checks to every adult American so long as his party keeps control of Congress. Now, they’re grappling with how to handle the fallout.
GOP leaders have privately pushed back on similar Trump promises of giving money to Americans in the past year, according to four people granted anonymity to share details of closed-door meetings. Senior Republicans on Capitol Hill were blindsided by Trump’s Wednesday night announcement in Dallas, and are trying to manage lawmakers’ and voters’ expectations about a trillion-dollar-plus proposal they cannot deliver.
“The only thing that I knew of was that he has this concept of a dividend of all Americans being able to share in the success of America,” House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, who appeared supportive of the idea, said in an interview on the sidelines of the party’s midterm convention. “But last night, no, I was just like you and everybody else when I went, ‘Oh, that’s interesting. Okay.’”
NRCC Chair Richard Hudson added in an interview: “First, I’d heard of it, so I want to talk to him and get some details before I comment.” Hudson said the idea was “exciting,” but he didn’t indicate the House GOP campaign arm would start touting the idea in ads for battleground candidates.
As for the chances of the measure passing Congress, Hudson responded: “Not this Congress. Because Democrats in the Senate will never go through with it.”
Republican leaders, indeed, don’t have the votes to pass such an offer this year, with some in the party questioning the legality of Trump effectively declaring he would pay for votes. GOP fiscal hawks and others also quickly shot it down.
And some Republicans worry Trump’s last-ditch move steps on their carefully laid messaging about the economic benefits of their major tax cuts package — benefits which have largely been erased by the Iran war and tariffs, according to five senior Republicans, who were also granted anonymity to speak candidly.
“It seems incredibly desperate,” said one of the House Republicans.
“I see zero chance of this happening,” said another House Republican at the convention.
The scramble to figure out their position — and how serious Trump is — comes at a critical final stretch of the midterms and as many voters grow increasingly skeptical of the GOP’s record on the economy.
Democrats were quick to slam Trump’s announcement as a way to bribe Americans and distract from an unpopular trade agenda and war in the Middle East. And as Republicans gathered in Dallas for their splashy midterm convention, the emerging splits over the dividends were on full display.
GOP lawmakers have privately noted a clear divide in the messaging around Trump’s promise of $5,000 checks: The White House and Trump’s campaign social media accounts are wholeheartedly touting the idea. GOP House and Senate campaign arms, meanwhile, are not. The NRSC declined to comment on the proposal.
Vice President JD Vance defended Trump’s offer on Fox News shortly after the president announced it Wednesday night, saying it was intended to boost “the American middle class.” But Vance did not mention the Trump proposal during a closed-door breakfast with GOP lawmakers, state party officials and activists from key battleground states on Thursday morning, instead touting a string of GOP economic achievements like Trump’s executive action that aims to lower prescription drug costs and the GOP tax cuts package.
“I think we’re all looking forward to learning more,” said Rep. Bryan Steil (R-Wis.) as he left the closed-door breakfast with Vance.
Asked if he would support Trump’s proposal, Steil repeated, “I think we’re all looking forward to learning more.”
While Republicans scramble to figure out how to position themselves on the “dividend” pledge, Trump told CBS on Thursday he doesn’t think he needs Congress to approve his plan to send out payments.
Amy Natoce, a spokesperson for Ohio GOP Sen. Jon Husted, who faces a tough battle for reelection this fall, said his team “has reached out to the White House to learn more about the proposal and how it would work.” Natoce noted that “putting money directly back into the pockets of hardworking Ohioans is in line with Jon Husted’s priorities.”
Some Republicans were willing to more fully embrace the idea.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said Wednesday that it was “an incentive for work” — even though the money will go to all Americans regardless of employment status. Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno pledged to draft up a bill on the checks “so that we can get the Trump Dividend passed immediately after the November 3rd election.” Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall, who’s facing a surprisingly competitive race, eagerly asked his social media followers to “comment how you will spend your $5,000 Trump Dividend when Republicans win in November.”
Fiscal hawks say they are eager for information. Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.), who serves on the House Budget Committee, declined to say whether he would support the president’s proposal which could cost more than $1 trillion.
“I would like to know how they would plan to pay for … back of envelope … well over $1 trillion,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) said in an interview Wednesday night shortly after Trump announced the proposal.
Trump has promised a litany of dividends and checks to Americans in recent years that have never materialized.
He raised the idea of direct checks to Americans in private meetings with GOP leaders before, often with money he says are from tariffs or the DOGE cuts. It’s an idea that Trump and some close White House advisers have discussed on and off for extended periods of time, particularly during his second term.
Each time, GOP leaders on Capitol Hill have argued that such an idea wouldn’t have the votes among Republicans given the price tag — and that it would likely require Congress to codify Trump’s controversial tariffs into law.
In December, Trump sent a $1,776 check to all members of the military, a move he referred back to while unveiling the dividend plan Wednesday. And he quickly followed up on Thursday with a separate offer to send money to Americans: $500 rebate checks to about 1 million Obamacare enrollees in 30 states.
Democrats immediately pounced on the latest proposal, including several candidates locked in competitive November races.
“Is this some kind of sick joke? Donald Trump’s policies are costing us more than [$5,000] — from his illegal war in Iran and his trade wars — and this dividend is nothing but a lie that wouldn’t even begin to make up for what he’s costing us,” Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed said in a statement to Blue Light News.
A spokesperson for El-Sayed’s opponent, Mike Rogers, did not respond to a request for comment on the proposal. He also declined questions from reporters at the Dallas convention Thursday.
So far Democratic leaders have been dismissive of the idea.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the dividends a “bribe” to Americans and said they demonstrate Trump’s weak political position.
“Trump just talks out of who knows what,” he told reporters Thursday in New York City.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and House Majority PAC did not indicate that they planned to include the dividends in messaging to voters.
Emmer dismissed the criticism that the checks were a bribe, saying Trump wanted Americans “to share in the success” of the country.
He acknowledged it’s unlikely the House takes up such a bill before the midterms, given there is no proposal drafted yet and only one week of session scheduled before November, but expressed confidence the GOP could deliver on Trump’s promise after the election.
“Let the policy guys draft it. Let them debate it. Let them move it through committee,” Emmer said. “You get it to the whip’s office. We’ll pass it.”
Kamala Harris will campaign with Sen. Jon Ossoff in Georgia and headline a fundraising dinner hosted by Fulton County Democrats next month, marking her latest involvement in the midterm elections.
Harris is also slated to join Nevada attorney general and gubernatorial candidate Aaron Ford next month in Las Vegas and campaign with Democratic challengers in two competitive House races in her home state.
“It is critical for Democrats to win this November so we can fight the Trump administration’s corruption and work to lower costs for the American people,” a Harris spokesperson said in a statement. “Vice President Harris will continue to do whatever is needed to support candidates in races where she can be helpful.”
The events in Georgia were first reported by CNN. Harris will also be the keynote speaker at the fundraising dinner on Oct. 30 in Atlanta. An Ossoff campaign spokesperson confirmed his plan to campaign with Harris. Ossoff’s campaign previously told Blue Light News that it would welcome Harris to Georgia to stump with or on behalf of the senator.
Still, the announcements come as some Democrats have been keeping distance from the party’s last presidential nominee.
In Iowa, where Democrats are hoping to flip a Senate seat and retake the governor’s mansion in a state where Harris lost by 13 points in 2024, the two candidates both declined to have Harris’ help. So did Mary Peltola, the Democratic Senate candidate in Alaska who “isn’t seeking endorsements from anyone from the Lower 48,” and House candidates in some red states and rural districts.
For her part, Harris has skirted the question of whether she will run again in 2028 and said she is focusing on the midterm elections.
“Right now midterms [are] full-time occupying my thoughts, my mind and my work,” Harris said in a recent podcast episode with Megan Rapinoe on Vox Media. “I’m spending full time working on doing everything I can to help people restore some balance in our government, which is through the midterms, winning back Congress, the House and the Senate.”
“I haven’t decided. But honestly, from my perspective, ’28 doesn’t matter if we don’t win ’26,” she said to a question on another presidential bid.
- Ted Cruz on his 2028 lane, JD Vance and the GOP’s future
- How Republicans are privately talking about their Senate map at the convention
- GOP leaders blindsided by Trump’s promise of $5K checks
- House will vote on legislation shielding consumers from data center energy costs
- Tom Emmer has a message for House GOP chairs: Term limits matter
- Trump to give $500 refunds to nearly 1 million Obamacare customers
- Hawley presses OpenAI over ‘rogue’ Hugging Face hack
- Boozman set to hold another committee farm bill vote next week
- Kamala Harris to campaign with Ossoff in Georgia
- ‘Aggressive’ Medicaid crackdowns will hurt children with autism, providers warn
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