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New York City Mayor Eric Adams sat down for an interview with Tucker Carlson, sparking more concern and drawing more criticism.
A day after attending the inauguration of President Donald Trump, New York City Mayor Eric Adams was more vocal about his criticisms of former President Joe Biden and his Democratic Party in an interview with Tucker Carlson. The interview, which was previously taped, aired Tuesday night (Jan. 21). “People often say, well, you know, ‘you don’t sound like a Democrat’ and ‘you seem to have left the party,’” Adams said in the interview at Gracie Mansion. “No, the party left me, and it left working-class people.” Adams has stated he will run for office again as a Democrat (he was once a registered Republican in 1990), but has cozied up to Republicans heavily in the last year since being federally indicted on corruption charges.
The 50-minute interview also showed Adams attacking former President Biden, stating that in conversations with aides in the White House, he was told to tone down his criticisms of the administration’s policies regarding migrants entering the U.S. “Basically, be a good Democrat, Eric,” Adams said to Carlson. “That was the basic overall theme.” He also related what another Biden aide told him: “Listen, this is like a gallstone. It’ll pass.” Carlson also touched on Adams’ five federal indictments. “I have no reason to suck up to you,” he said. “I thought it was ridiculous.” Adams responded gaily, ‘When I read it, I was like, where are the bags of cash?”
The interview was a sea change, as the embattled mayor had previously blasted Carlson as someone who “perpetuates racist, anti-immigrant propaganda.” Adams has been under fire after abruptly canceling his appearances at events to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Monday (Jan. 20) to attend Trump’s inauguration, and he offered no comments on Trump’s subsequent executive orders. State Senator Zellnor Myrie, who is running against Adams in the upcoming Democratic primary, ripped the interview in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“If you’re busy tonight, you can catch him on the Steve Bannon podcast tomorrow.” Even one of Adams’ strongest allies, the Reverend Al Sharpton, questioned Adams’ intentions. “To say you’re not going to raise your eyebrows would be being dishonest,” Sharpton said in a segment on MSNBC. “I think this is going to cause a lot of us to say, ‘What is this all about?’”
