Showing posts with label Kathy Hochul. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kathy Hochul. Show all posts

Friday, July 24, 2026

Attacker yells something like "Al Lou's Snackbar" stabs a Jew and Asian in NYC's upper West Side

Lincoln Square Synagogue

Two men, one of whom was visibly Jewish, were stabbed outside an Orthodox synagogue in Manhattan's West Side.

The NYPD's initial investigation suggests that mental health may have been a factor, or perhaps another case of anti-Semitism catching on among the fashionable Left. To their credit, investigators are also evaluating the stabbings as a potential hate crime, a refreshing change from pretending every attack on Jews is just an unfortunate coincidence.

The Lincoln Square Synagogue at 200 Amsterdam Avenue on the corner of West 69th Street in Manhattan's Lincoln Square neighborhood has stood since 1970, designed by Hausman & Rosenberg. On Thursday, it became the latest reminder that New York's promises of tolerance seem to apply to everyone except Jews.

Eyewitnesses allege that the suspect shouted something that sounded sort of like "Al Lou's Snack bar" during the attack, according to the Anti-Defamation League in a post on X.

Police said a 57 year old man was stabbed in the back, while a 50 year old man was stabbed in the chest because they are Jewish.

New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, who coincidentally is also Jewish, announced that 51 year old Raul Morales had been arrested in connection with both attacks and that "no other people are being sought," in a post on X early Friday morning.

She added that one victim is Asian and the other is Jewish, and that the NYPD is investigating whether the attacks qualify as a hate crime.

At the same time, Tisch said the initial investigation suggested the attacker's mental health "may have been a factor," just like it is with all Muslims who believe that killing people for being Jewish is the right thing to do to please Allah. The thing is, if Allah has created the world and thus created the Jews, then how dies he call himself perfect? I certainly wouldn't hire Allah as a project manager, that's for sure.

"At this time there is no known link between Morales and either of the victims, nor between the victims and each other," she said.

That explanation has become almost routine whenever someone attacks Jews. The script practically writes itself. Mention mental health, avoid uncomfortable questions, and hope everyone moves on before anyone notices the growing pattern. Has nobody on the freaking left read the Islamic war manual they call the Koran?

New York Mayor and proud anti-Semite, comrade Zohran Mamdani responded on X, writing, "I have been briefed on today’s horrifying stabbings on the Upper West Side, where an Asian man and a Jewish man were attacked."

"According to witness and victim statements, the perpetrator yelled 'Allahu Akbar' during both attacks. I am relieved that both victims are in stable condition."

"The NYPD’s initial investigation suggests that mental health may have been a factor. They are also evaluating these stabbings as potential hate crimes," he added, using taqiyya to keep things on the down-low.

That statement might carry more weight if New Yorkers had not spent months watching politicians and activists normalize anti-Israel rhetoric while insisting there was absolutely no connection between demonizing the Jewish state and rising hostility toward Jewish people. Apparently, the Left believes words have immense power, except when those words are directed at Jews.

Governor Kathy Hochul (D) also responded on X, saying she was "Disgusted by what appears to be another senseless attack on New Yorkers simply because they’re Jewish."

"The strength of New York has always been our ability to live together across every faith and background," she said, referring to the past.

Hochul pulled out an index card and read it: "Our hearts are also with the second victim. Asian New Yorkers, like Jewish New Yorkers, have endured waves of hate-fueled violence in recent years. Hate rarely stops with one group."

Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, was considerably less diplomatic. He directly blamed jihadi Mayor Mamdani for fostering the climate that made such violence more likely.

In a post on X, Danon wrote, "Zohran Mamdani, your incitement is putting Jewish lives in danger in New York, home to the largest Jewish community outside Israel."

"You have spent months fueling hatred, demonizing Israel and legitimizing hostility toward Jews. Now take responsibility for the consequences," he added.

"Stop the incitement. Before more people get hurt."

Yeah, sure. Like Mamdani is going to actually stop anti-Semitic violence when his constituency is comprised of blue and pink-hair commies, socialists, and brother Islamists who now accept anti-Semitic rhetoric as cocktail conversation.

Whether investigators ultimately conclude the attack was driven by mental illness, anti-Semitism, or both, one fact remains impossible to ignore. Jewish New Yorkers continue to find themselves targeted with alarming frequency, while too many public officials seem more comfortable explaining away the violence than confronting the toxic ideology that keeps producing it.



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Socialist NYC Mayor Celebrates Tax On Rich People's Second Homes As City Braces For More Empty Buildings And Unemployed Doormen




In a development that surprised only those who sleep through city council meetings, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani celebrated the Kathy Hochul backed levy on second homes worth more than $5M and immediately reminded everyone why no one should ever hand a socialist the keys to the tax code.

New York City mayor comrade Zohran Mamdani is facing heat on social media after his post celebrating the state’s new pied-à-terre tax on New Yorkers with a second home."If you have a second home in New York City worth more than $5 million, check your mailbox when you’re back in the five boroughs, because you've got mail," Mamdani posted on X, touting the tax on specific second properties introduced by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul that he supported going into effect soon.

"Today, we sent notification letters to property owners, letting them know that our new pied-à-terre tax is coming soon," the anti-Semitic comrade continued. "The best city in the world deserves the best parks, libraries, and schools in the world. That's only possible when we all pay our fair share."

As of Friday morning, Mamdani’s post had been viewed over 10 million times and conservatives on social media blasted the mayor and warned that the exodus of wealthy New Yorkers will only continue under this new plan.

Here are just some of the comments posted on X:

"Never elect a politician who: (1) sees your money as his slush fund, (2) loves Karl Marx, or (3) uses French words like ‘pied-à-terre’ to disguise new, confiscatory taxes he wants to impose to redistribute wealth," Republican Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT).

"Socialism - Florida’s best real estate agent," Republican Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL).

"NYC’s pied-à-terre tax hasn’t even started and brokers already say owners are calling to sell," GOP strategist and attorney Mehek Cooke posted. Apparently, owners who can afford a luxury pied-à-terre are smart enough to get out of the cauldron on the stove before it starts to boil.

"Empty units don’t tip [doormen] or pay supers. You’re not taxing the rich. You’re firing the working class that depended on them." Communists are too busy virtue signaling to realize this fact.

"More incitement," Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton posted. "Communist @NYCMayor celebrates a confiscatory tax targeted at a select few."


"What will the excuse be when literally nothing improves after all these tax increases?" New York City Republican Councilwoman Vickie Paladino posted. "Will they just demand even more, or will they tell us to ignore our own eyes as they insist they’ve actually fixed everything? Both? "

"The condescension towards the people who already pay a ton of property taxes to NYC," Washington Free Beacon investigative reporter Chuck Ross posted.

Critics, including billionaire Ken Griffin whose luxury New York City home was featured in Mamdani's controversial video announcing the tax, argue the tax will only drive more wealthy New Yorkers out of the state and bring jobs and investments with them.

And while comrade Mamdani is a communist cum jihadi, he loves himself some capitalism, as does his family, in spite of their spouting the opposite.

Mahmood Mamdani, the father of Zohran, is a Herbert Lehman Professor of Government and a professor of political science where he preaches communist ideas, anthropology, and African studies at Columbia University. He makes somewhere in the neighborhood of $300,000; probably more.

Mira Nair, his mommy, is an independent filmmaker, director and producer and while she doesn't receive a fixed salary, her income from directing and producing fees, royalties, residuals, grants and her production company (Mirabai Films) rakes in a lot of capital, bringing he capital estimated to be between $20-$40 million or more. While this is unverified, it's likely quite a reasonable estimate. In addition, she and her professor hubby own a 5-bedroom, four-bathroom villa on two acres in the tony Buziga Hill neighborhood and for the past 8 years have rented it out as an Airbnb for roughly $330-$350 per night.

Zohran Mamdani publicly acknowledged that he lived in a rent-stabilized apartment in Astoria, Queens with his semi-ordinary wife in a one-bedroom apartment.


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Tuesday, July 14, 2026

Mamdani Discovers Crime Stats Improve Dramatically If You Explain Them Long Enough


New York City Mayor comrade Zohran Mamdani found himself taking incoming fire Monday after offering what may become the Left's newest crime-fighting strategy: explaining away bad statistics until everyone forgets why they were worried in the first place. That tactic is known in the military as "baffle them with your bullsht."

During an interview with PIX11 News, Mamdani was asked about concerns over rising rape and felony assault numbers raised by New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin. Rather than promising tougher enforcement or more police, the mayor reached for a familiar progressive comfort blanket, context.


"And what I think is important to know is a lot of the increase in rape also comes from an expanded definition of what counts as rape, as well as survivors coming forward for acts that took place years prior," Mamdani said. "And we are thankful for them coming forward, the courage and the bravery it takes, but just to provide New Yorkers with that context."

Translation: don't believe your lying statistics.

To be fair, Mamdani also pointed out that murders and shootings remain among the lowest on record. Unfortunately for New Yorkers, that reassurance landed about as well as telling someone their apartment fire isn't so bad because the kitchen is still standing.

Even some Democrats were less than thrilled with the explanation.

New York City Council member Susan Zhuang wrote on X, "Expanding the legal definition of rape was an important step toward recognizing more survivors under the law. But it should never be used to deflect from the responsibility to reduce sexual violence. Survivors deserve leadership, action, accountability, and justice. They don’t deserve deflection."

Women's sports advocate Riley Gaines summed up the reaction with a question many were already asking: "HOW did women vote for this guy?"


Rep, Chip Roy (R-TX), offered his own assessment: "Rapes are up. Rents are up. Foreign diseases and parasites spreading. Historic Churches burning left and right. Elect the third world, get the third world."


OutKick founder Clay Travis piled on with, "Sure, New York City rents hit an all time record high today, but at least the mayor is still very eloquent on social medi…whoops!"


RedState writer Bonchie simply observed, "Going great."

Pro-Israel activist Lizzy Savetzky added, "Didn’t realize rape had a dynamic definition."

Substack writer Jim Treacher quipped, "No wonder these guys saw no problem with Platner."

Mamdani's reference to an "expanded definition" appears to point to New York's Rape is Rape Act, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2024. The law broadened the legal definition of rape to include forms of nonconsensual sexual assault beyond vaginal penetration.

That explanation, however, leaves one awkward detail. The law took effect in September 2024, yet the NYPD's latest CompStat report still shows rapes up 6.6 percent compared with the same period last year, well after the legal definition had already changed.

Apparently, in progressive governance, reality is just another statistic waiting for the proper explanation.

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Saturday, May 2, 2026

Americans Continue Voting With Their Feet, Apparently Preferring Not To Be Taxed Into Oblivion



New Census data reveals a massive migration shift as high-tax states lose residents to the booming Southeast and Sun Belt. Experts are baffled why anyone would leave paradise for lower taxes and functioning streets. Hmmm?

Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and ‘Fox & Friends Weekend’ co-host Charlie Hurt discuss an exodus of residents from Democrat-led states due to taxes.

Americans appear to be voting with their feet as the country’s most iconic cities continue to see declining populations or struggle to regain their pre-pandemic footing, shocking no one with two brain cells to rub together.

On the East Coast, New York City is facing a renewed exodus. 

According to a Citizens Budget Commission study released earlier this month, the Big Apple lost more residents than it gained last year. The report found that New York City lost approximately 114,000 more domestic residents to other U.S. cities than it gained in 2025, reversing two years of marginal growth.

The decline has become so pronounced that even New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has sounded the alarm. Pleading in March for "high net worth" individuals to return, Hochul noted the erosion of the Empire State’s tax base is threatening "the generous social programs that we want to have in our state."

A nervous Hochul admitted that New York is "in competition with other states who have less of a tax burden," specifically citing "Wall Street businesses looking at Texas" as a primary concern.Further north, Boston is struggling to retain its next generation of workers. 


In Massachusetts, a 2026 Young Residents Survey from the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Foundation, released in April, revealed that 26 percent of residents aged 20 to 30 plan to leave the area within the next five years.

Of those planning to move, nearly half are looking to exit the state entirely, with a majority eyeing the Southeast and Southwest. High housing costs remain the primary driver for those planning to leave, followed closely by the irresistible urge not to fund endless progressive experiments.

The trend is part of a larger drain on the Commonwealth. 

An analysis by the Pioneer Institute shows Massachusetts has suffered a net loss of approximately 182,000 residents due to domestic out-migration over the last five years. At this rate the state bird will soon be the U-Haul.The West Coast is seeing similar patterns, particularly in Los Angeles County. The latest U.S. Census data released in March 2026 shows that between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, 53,421 residents left the county. The largest numeric decline of any county in the nation. Since 2020, Los Angeles County’s population has shrunk from roughly 10 million to 9.7 million, proving once again that even the weather cannot overcome terrible governance.

In San Francisco, the population has failed to recover from its pandemic-era low. Despite a localized boom in the artificial intelligence sector, newly released Census estimates show the city’s total population remains well below 2020 levels. AI may be the future, but apparently it still cannot convince people to live around  the homeless and human feces, drugs and violence.

While the coastlines struggle, the Southeast is booming like it just discovered low taxes and personal responsibility. The Census Bureau reported in March that many of the fastest-growing counties in the country are now concentrated in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina.

South Carolina has officially claimed the title of the fastest-growing state in the nation. Between July 2024 and July 2025, the Palmetto State’s population surged by 1.5 percent, fueled by a net influx of 66,622 domestic migrants who probably just wanted grocery stores without bulletproof glass.


In terms of "income migration," Florida remains the undisputed king. The Florida Chamber of Commerce reports that the Sunshine State leads the nation with a net income migration of nearly 36.1 billion dollars annually. Turns out people enjoy keeping more of their own money rather than giving it to, say, Somalia businesses.

A new study by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation released on April 7, 2026, confirmed that taxpayers are fleeing high-tax environments for more fiscally friendly states. While Texas and Florida remain the top targets, states like North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee are also seeing record gains. Notably, the NTUF "Migration in Minutes" metric found that Texas surpassed Florida in 2022 as the state gaining a new taxpayer most frequently. One every 4 minutes and 40 seconds. That is not a migration, it's more like a stampede of J.B. Pritzker look-alike contestants at a free pizza grand opening.

The U.S. Census Bureau’s March report highlighted that the nation’s most populous counties. Including Los Angeles, Cook County (Chicago), Harris County (Houston), and the five boroughs of New York City. Are feeling the sting of lower Net International Migration.

Historically, these hubs relied on international arrivals to offset domestic losses. However, the CBC reported a 70 percent drop in international migration to New York City in 2025 compared to the previous year.

"The nation’s largest counties . . .  are often international migration hubs," said Census Bureau demographer George M. Hayward. "With fewer gains from international migration, these types of counties saw their population growth diminish or even turn into loss."Translation: Even the replacement population is starting to notice the vibe is off.

Communism much?

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Tuesday, March 31, 2026

Democratic Hochul aide under investigation over alleged migrant shelter bribes




Federal prosecutors are investigating whether a New York City council-member and her sister, a top aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul, accepted bribes or kickbacks tied to city funding steered to a migrant shelter provider, according to a search warrant obtained by The Associated Press.

The March 19 warrant seeks evidence of possible criminal conduct involving Council-member Farah Louis, a Brooklyn Democrat, her sister, Debbie Louis, Hochul’s assistant secretary for New York City intergovernmental affairs, and Edu Hermelyn, husband of Assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, the chair of the Brooklyn Democratic Party.

A spokesperson for Hochul said Debbie Louis was placed on leave last week after the governor became aware of the federal corruption probe. Someone answering a phone number associated with Louis ended the call when asked by the AP about the investigation, and the AP reported messages left for Farah Louis and Hermelyn were not returned.

New York City Council-member Farah Louis is reportedly under federal investigation for an alleged bribery scheme.  According to the warrant, investigators are examining whether the three received benefits in exchange for actions taken on behalf of BHRAGS Home Care Inc., a Brooklyn nonprofit that historically provided in-home care for sick and elderly clients.

As New York City’s migrant influx intensified in 2022, BHRAGS broadened its work to include emergency shelter operations for asylum seekers and other homeless services. Since then, public records show the group has been awarded more than a dozen contracts worth upward of $200 million from the city’s Department of Homeless Services.

"This is political persecution driven by the far-right, targeting immigrants and the leaders who stand with them," a political insider tied to Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn told the New York Post on Monday. "There are no charges at this time, and the facts will ultimately lead to this case being dropped on its merits."

An attorney for BHRAGS Executive Director Roberto Samedy declined to comment to the AP.The warrant also seeks records of money transfers and communications involving Edouardo St. Fort, a former New York Police Department sergeant who retired in 2023. That same year, records indicate his firm, Fort NYC Security, secured a $3 million contract from the Department of Homeless Services. AP calls and emails seeking comment from St. Fort were not returned.The warrant’s existence does not mean charges are imminent. It indicates only that federal investigators convinced a judge they had sufficient grounds to search for and seize potential evidence.

The probe lands amid broader scrutiny over how New York City awarded emergency shelter contracts during the migrant crisis, when the arrival of tens of thousands of asylum seekers strained the city’s shelter system and prompted officials under then-Mayor Eric Adams to rapidly expand housing capacity through outside providers.


Some of those arrangements have drawn criticism from watchdogs and political opponents, who questioned the speed, scale and oversight of the contracting process.

The figures named in the warrant are all connected to Brooklyn’s Democratic political establishment, which has been rocked by a series of ethics controversies in recent years. Hermelyn, who once served as a senior adviser to Adams, stepped down after questions were raised about whether his role as a Brooklyn district leader conflicted with rules barring certain dual government positions. He also went on to advise former Gov. Andrew Cuomo during Cuomo’s unsuccessful mayoral campaign.

The Trump administration, led by fraud investigation czar Vice President JD Vance, has prioritized federal law enforcement investigations nationwide.

Just this week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's Treasury Department announced it is offering whistleblowers a major financial incentive to help expose fraud, directing would-be tipsters to the Treasury.gov website, telling Fox News on Monday that the administration has already received more than 700 leads.

The Treasury’s whistleblower page says eligible tipsters can receive between 10 percent and 30 percent of monetary sanctions collected for successful actions.

While Minnesota fraud among the state's Somali community has made headlines thus far thanks to independent journalist Nick Shirley's reporting, Bessent actually praised that state for having some level of transparency that is not permitted in California or New York.

"That's why that young man, Nick Shirley, was able to go to see the scams, because it was: This is the name of the facility, this is the address, this is how much money they got," Bessent said. "Oh look, it's an empty storefront. There's no one here. New York, California are hiding it."

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Wednesday, March 18, 2026

NY Gov. Hochul pleads with New Yorkers to return from Florida, admits taxes chased them off




New York Governor Kathy Hochul did her best impression of a broke ex who suddenly wants the old flame back this week, basically pleading with the wealthy “captives” she’s already scared off to please, pretty please, come home and bankroll her endless parade of socialist wish-list items.

In a fireside chat with Nick Reisman at the Politico New York Agenda summit, Hochul finally uttered the words conservatives have been screaming into the void for years: high taxes make rich people leave. It’s human nature, guys.

Shocking development, I know.

After treating the state’s high-net-worth crowd like a bottomless slot machine for far too long, the governor had her come-to-Jesus moment: “I need people who are high-net-worth to support the generous social programs that we want to have in our state … cut me the checks, if you want to be supportive, but maybe the first step should be to go down to Palm Beach and see who we can bring back home because our tax base has been eroded.”

Translation: The well has run dry, the golden geese have flown south to a place with zero state income tax and a governor who doesn’t treat them like escaped prisoners.

“Remote work changed everything,” Hochul whined, sounding exactly like a warden who just noticed the jailbreak in progress. “There were people who could only work in an office in Manhattan . . .  and they were captives to our state. They were going to stay. We saw that that’s not the case.” 

She even copped to Wall Street eyeballing Texas, not because the Lone Star governor is more charming, but “they’re going there because of the tax rate.”

Despite this rare flash of self-awareness, Hochul’s big-brain fix isn’t slashing the bloated spending or dialing back the “generous” programs that created the exodus. Nope. She’s reduced to begging “patriotic millionaires” to “cut me the checks” and floating the idea of a recruitment safari in Florida. “Maybe the first step should be to go down to Palm Beach and see who we can bring back home because our tax base has been eroded,” she said, showing us again how much she knows about human nature.

Yeah, good luck selling that timeshare pitch. Why swap a beachfront cabana and year-round sunshine for a guilt-trip voicemail from Albany demanding tribute?

The governor also burned plenty of oxygen griping about the Trump administration, pinning everything from gas prices to her own flailing green-energy fantasies on the former president. She admitted her eco-mandates are “scaring the crap out of everybody” with utility bills going through the roof, yet she’s still peddling an “all-of-the-above approach” while begging for “breathing room.”

In the end, Hochul remains firmly in denial, clinging to her vision of a socialist paradise paid for by other people’s money. She’s just now discovering, way too late, what Margaret Thatcher tried to tell everyone: eventually, you run out of other people’s money.

Classic liberal arc: spend like there’s no tomorrow, chase away the payers, then act surprised when the math doesn’t math. 

Hey, Kathy, human nature is a bummer.

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Thursday, February 19, 2026

Poor New Yorkers form breadline-like formation outside "free" grocery store pop-up


Folks, if there's one thing that can make a New Yorker forget about the rent, the rats, and the guy on the subway playing saxophone covers of death metal, it's the promise of free stuff, or at least stuff others have to pay for, And boy, did Polymarket deliver on that front with their little "first free grocery store" stunt in the West Village. Hundreds lined up like it was Black Friday at a Tiffany's liquidation sale, only instead of diamonds, they were fighting over pasta sauce and Tide Pods. [H/T Fox News Digital]

"New Yorkers are in pain," said Nick from Queens, who paid the recently hiked subway fare to get to Greenwich Village, waiting patiently (or as patiently as a Queens guy can) for his shot at some bath soap and laundry glory.


This whole circus popped up on Feb. 12 as a five-day giveaway courtesy of the crypto prediction market folks at Polymarket, who are apparently feeling the regulatory heat in various states, including the Empire State itself. Critics are calling it a not-so-subtle jab at Democratic NYC Mayor and Comrade Zohran Mamdani's grand plan for communist-style city-run grocery stores to combat the soul-crushing cost of living here. Because nothing says "we're serious about affordability" like a billionaire-backed pop-up that runs out of tickets faster than a politician runs out of excuses.

The scene was pure New York chaos: lines wrapping around the block, people showing up before the sun bothered to rise, and that special anxiety over who snags a yellow ticket before the shelves go barren. It's like musical chairs, but the chairs are cans of soup and the music is the sound of security guards yelling.

As the crowd swelled, so did the drama. Fatima told right-of-center Fox News Digital that she rolled up at 9:00 and got the bad news: "They said that they ran out of tickets."

Sherrod from Jamaica, Queens, got the same brush-off: "They told me that they ran out of tickets. I couldn't get no more food.… I couldn't get access to the store."

Security eventually started herding folks away like stray cats: "Let's go people, let's go. Go home. Do not linger, do not look, do not watch. Please go home." So he paid another recently hiked subway fare and went home, we can suppose.

Charming. Nothing says "welcome to our generous giveaway" like being told to flick off. 


For those who scored tickets, it was a supervised shopping spree: pair up with a staffer, fill a blue tote bag, try not to look too greedy. Some loved it. Nick, who somehow landed fourth in line, praised the security: "Security's been phenomenal. This morning, there was a drunk guy over here harassing a lady... the head security guy... got him out of here. Protecting us."

The drunk guy is nowhere to be found and his family might be looking for him.

Others were less impressed. Michael, chilling outside with his chair like he was tailgating the apocalypse, griped about security's "presentation" when dealing with folks from "florid backgrounds," lacking that customer service polish, apparently. He was down to three cups of soup at home and figured the good stuff would be gone by quitting time.

Sumayah from Brooklyn hit it earlier in the week, snagging two dozen eggs and butter before the shelves turned into a ghost town. Out of work for months and on disability, she said this kind of help could save her $600 a month on food and basics. Still, the chaperoned shopping felt weird: "Someone shops with me and I'm kind of uncomfortable with that... they kind of rushed me through things and I couldn’t get all the stuff that I wanted."

It's like, "Do you really need that? Someone in greater need might need that quart of milk--put it back."

But overall? "Very much needed in New York" because it's free for those getting their ticket.

The turnout proved how desperate things are. Word spreads faster than a funny rash one can get sitting bare-butt on the D train. Sumayah even met someone fresh off a plane from India: "‘Oh my God, I'm in line. I'm coming to get free food.' I'm thinking like, how should I get back on the plane with that?"

Of course, the food in India is extremely cheap and delicious--I returned from India last week and you can have a huge meal for about 5 US bucks. Just don't forget to drink bottled water.

Everyone, ticket or no ticket, hammered the same point: food prices here are insane. Jaquan, homeless and riding the A train in, used to drop $300–500 on groceries living with Mom. Monique blew $200 recently and "didn’t even get much." Sherrod's family of four rings up $400–500 a month. Nick switched to fast food and it's wrecking his health, plus he's a month behind on his phone bill because groceries win every time.

The lucky 300+ who made it inside? Ecstatic. Nick emerged thrilled: "I got the spaghetti. I got orange juice. I like orange juice. I also got some ground beef. They had grass-fed ground beef, they had lean ground beef and the regular ground beef, so I'm really glad I got that. I'm really glad I got the grass-fed."

Polymarket [perverse] says they funded the whole thing, tossed $1 million to the Food Bank for New York City, and even handed out $50 gift cards to the folks stuck at the back of the line. How accommodating.

Shoppers saw it as a teachable moment for Mamdani and his city-owned store dreams: better security, no running out of food, crack down on line-cutters, put them in actual food deserts instead of fancy Manhattan blocks.


Because nothing screams "progressive utopia" like a crypto stunt showing exactly why government grocery stores might end in the same ticket frenzy, security shouts, and dashed hopes.

New Yorkers are in pain, alright. And free Tide Pods aren't fixing it because they still aren't edible, kids. 

So where is the money going to come from to pay for "free" groceries? From us, the taxpayers. And in order to pay for it the taxes are going to need to rise, and with Comrade Mamdani as Mayor, they will--at least the property taxes, because that's all he is allowed to raise. He will try to get NY Gov. Hochul on his communist bandwagon, and with elections coming up for her, it's doubtful she'll go along with his demands. 

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But if he raises property taxes the 9.5% he's saying, this will raise a lot of Big Apple hackles and he might even be challenged by the governor for possible removal from office. I've heard rumors but will not take them seriously unless I see some legal movement to end this communist regime.

Free food is not a bad thing, but it's a no-such thing. Nothing is free and someone has to pay for it. This will drive the richest New Yorkers to think twice about where they want to live.

How Zohran Mamdani can be removed from office

This smile is the main reason he got elected

I asked Grok this question: Can New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani be removed from office? The following is what the AI responded and put in my own words:

The New York City mayor can't be "impeached" in the way we think of the term from the federal level or even the state governor's process; no legislative trial, no articles voted up or down by a City Council acting as a Senate. The NYC Charter and state law don't provide for anything that dramatic or theatrical. Instead, there are two paths to showing a mayor the door, and both are more about removal for cause than a full-blown political spectacle.

First, and by far the most straightforward (if politically explosive), is the governor's power. 

Under Section 9 of the City Charter, and backed by the state Constitution (Article XIII, sections 5 and 13) plus Public Officers Law §33, the governor of New York can simply remove the mayor. It's broad, almost sweeping authority with remarkably few guardrails. The process is this: the governor lays out charges (misconduct, corruption, dereliction of duty, whatever the executive deems sufficient), serves them on the mayor, and gives the target a chance to respond at a hearing. While that's pending, the governor can suspend the mayor for up to 30 days. If the charges stick after due process, out goes the mayor.

This isn't some theoretical relic; it's real authority, exercised rarely but memorably. Think back to 1932, when Governor Franklin Roosevelt had Mayor Jimmy Walker in his sights over bribery and corruption allegations. Walker resigned before the axe fell, but the threat was credible. Courts haven't cabined this power much, so the governor has wide discretion on what qualifies as removable offenses. In the context of recent events (say, federal indictments hanging over City Hall), people have pointed to Governor Kathy Hochul's leverage here, even if political realities make pulling the trigger a high-wire act. It's easy on paper, potentially devastating in practice.

The second route is the City Charter's "Committee on Mayoral Inability," a clunkier, more internal mechanism designed for incapacity rather than outright malfeasance. This five-member panel includes the Corporation Counsel, the Comptroller, the City Council Speaker, a deputy mayor picked by the sitting mayor (talk about a potential conflict), and the longest-serving borough president. 

If four out of five agree that the mayor is temporarily or permanently unable to discharge the duties of the office, whether from health issues, legal entanglements that paralyze governance, or misconduct that renders effective leadership impossible, they can refer it to the full City Council.

Then the Council weighs in: a two-thirds vote (at least 34 of 51 members) is needed to confirm permanent removal or a suspension. It's a high bar, deliberately so, to avoid rash or partisan overreach. No mayor has ever been permanently ousted this way, which tells you how politically fraught and logistically challenging it would be, especially with that mayor-selected deputy potentially acting as a loyal blocker. But no mayor has been so far to the left and so obviously antisemitic as the present clown in office.

In either scenario, removal doesn't require a criminal conviction; charges or a finding of incapacity suffice, with due process baked in to satisfy constitutional concerns. If it happens, the Public Advocate steps in as acting mayor, and a special election follows for a permanent replacement. The system prioritizes stability over swift political justice; stability for the city, headaches for everyone else involved.

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Bottom line: no impeachment circus, just two very different levers, one gubernatorial sledgehammer, one cumbersome city committee, and neither gets pulled lightly. But when the pressure builds, as it has in recent years, those options suddenly look a lot more real.

The garbage is piling up on the streets; five thousand NYPD hiring slots are not going to be filled; and the calls to Islamic prayer are being blasted on city streets. 

The dead from 911 are rolling in their graves.


Saturday, February 14, 2026

Free Buses, Real Costs: Mamdani’s Socialist Fantasy Collides with New York Reality


New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has turned "fast and free buses" into the centerpiece of his administration, selling it as an affordability lifeline and a long-overdue upgrade for a bus system that's been ignored for decades. Nice pitch, but this grand plan is about to slam into the brick wall of New York City politics.

Supporters insist fare-free buses would cut down on conflict, boost safety, and deliver instant relief to the riders who rely on them most. Skeptics, including on-air pundits and transit groups, warn it's a recipe for a massive funding black hole at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority unless the city locks in a rock-solid revenue source and a workable operational blueprint.New York City bus riders already endure some of the slowest service in the country, despite hauling millions of passengers daily.

As of early 2026, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has pushed back on Mayor Zohran Mamdani's proposal for citywide free buses, arguing that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) cannot afford the estimated annual loss in fare revenue. "We’re the biggest ridership, and yet we're subject to the slowest buses. It's a fundamental unfairness. It's an embarrassment," Danny Pearlstein, policy and communications director at the Riders Alliance, told Fox News Digital during a bus ride through the Bronx.

That grim track record is exactly why Mamdani's idea has political legs. Pearlstein noted that bus riders, often students, seniors, and caregivers, are squeezed for both time and cash, just like drivers or subway users. Yet buses have been shoved to the back burner on city streets for years.

"That is why this administration's call for fast and free buses resonates," he added. Pearlstein's take, along with others, anchors Fox News Digital's "The Rise of Socialism" series, which spotlights how socialist ideas are creeping into debates and policies in big American cities. Advocates lead with safety and less drama. Multiple sources pointed out that fare disputes routinely spark tension between riders and operators.

"When you eliminate fare payments on the buses, the friction between passengers and the drivers goes away," said Brian Fritsch, associate director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC). "It does create a safer atmosphere for drivers. That has been a sore spot for a number of years."

Brian Fritsch told Fox News Digital that his organization needs to see a more "concrete plan" and determine funding streams for free busing before they take a position on the proposal. Transit analyst Charles Komanoff, who crunched the numbers on Mamdani's free bus idea, backed that up, pointing to past assaults on drivers over fare issues.

"Every year, there’s maybe a dozen cases in which a bus driver is assaulted," Komanoff said. "Presumably that would shrink or maybe disappear entirely if there was no expectation to pay the fare in the first place."

Advocates also lean on data from the city’s recent fare-free bus pilot, rolled out in late 2023 under a state budget mandate. The MTA picked one local route per borough, ditched fares for nearly a year, and brought them back in September 2024.

MTA's review showed ridership jumped on all five routes, about 30 percent on weekdays and closer to 40 percent on weekends. But most of the gains came from current riders making extra trips, not hordes of new users flooding in. The nine-month experiment cost around $12 million in lost fares and extras.

The pilot lays bare the free-transit debate in stark terms: ditching fares can spike usage, but it punches a real hole in the budget and doesn’t magically unleash massive new demand. Expand it citywide, and the cash has to come from taxpayers, Albany, or slashed services elsewhere.New York City is losing close to $1 billion in fare evasion a year. This is roughly the same cost as Mamdani's free and fast bus proposal. However, skeptics say the government must find long-term revenue streams to make fare-free buses successful. Pearlstein argued the pilot still proved free buses are safer and more popular, even if they’re no cure-all.

On affordability, supporters say it would deliver real help to low-income New Yorkers using buses for short, must-do trips.

"Most of the cost of bus operations is already paid for by public subsidies, not by fares," Pearlstein said. "We're collecting several hundred million dollars at the fare box, compared to several billion already invested. What we're replacing is an order of magnitude smaller than what we already raise from other sources."

Komanoff noted most extra trips from free fares wouldn't swap out car rides but would let people take journeys they currently skip.

"We want people to have the basic right to the city," he said.

Supporters add that no fares could shave boarding times and allow all-door loading, modestly speeding things up.

Komanoff's modeling pegged fare-free gains at roughly 7 to 12 percent faster buses. Not revolutionary, but a solid win for daily riders.

"That would be a material improvement in the lives of the two million New Yorkers a day who ride the buses," he said.

Even backers admit speed and reliability trump price every time.

Transit economist Charles Komanoff said he believes Mamdani's bus proposal will essentially generate "free money" via time saved per passenger. "Let’s be clear," Komanoff said. "Making the buses work better, having them be speedier, more reliable, more consistent, is probably more important than making them free. But I think we can do both."

The real killer? Money.

"If there were to be a free bus program, there would need to be some additional revenue coming into the MTA," Fritsch said. "They obviously couldn't just make cuts to make up that loss." Bus fares back MTA's long-term bonds, so scrapping them means reworking financing structures, not just plugging an annual gap.

PCAC has flagged over 20 possible revenue ideas for fare-free buses, but Fritsch stressed the real hurdle is political willpower and city-MTA coordination.

"The mayor has initiatives, the MTA is a state agency," he said. "They need to meet somewhere in the middle."

Komanoff pushed for city taxpayers, not suburban commuters or the MTA, to foot the roughly $800 million annual tab.

"That's not chump change," he said. "But it’s not a game changer for the city’s finances either." Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, spins the funding debate through his ideological filter: make essentials free and accessible by jacking up taxes on corporations and the rich. His platform hammers redistribution and bigger government in daily life, casting fare-free buses as a public right, not a paid service.

Critics call that view naive about real-world operations.

Charlton D'Souza, founding president of Passengers United and a southeast Queens native, fears free buses could set dangerous expectations for a system already short on drivers, plagued by old equipment, and delivering spotty service.

"We don't have enough bus drivers. Trips are not getting filled," D'Souza said. "If you make the buses free, people are going to expect a service."

He flagged accountability and budget risks, citing past cuts in tough times.


"I lived through the 2008 budget cuts," D'Souza continued. "They cut bus routes; they cut subway lines. When elected officials talk, they don't always understand the operational dynamics."

Skeptics question who really wins from universal free fares. It could subsidize folks who don’t need help while starving targeted aid.

"If somebody's making $100,000 or $200,000 and they're getting a free ride, how is that equitable?" D'Souza said, pushing instead to expand the city’s Fair Fares program.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is widely described as a democratic socialist. His campaign materials frame an affordability agenda funded by "taxing corporations & the 1%" and includes other major redistributive goals. 

Critics see free buses as a symptom of a larger slide toward democratic socialism, turning user-fee services into taxpayer-funded entitlements, severing usage from payment, and ballooning government’s grip on daily economics.

Supporters frame it as justice against inequality. Skeptics see a governing philosophy obsessed with redistribution over market sense, risking endless public bailouts.

Still, even wary voices admit Mamdani has moved the needle.

"I liked his positivity, his can-do attitude," Komanoff said, recalling first encountering Mamdani years ago at a rally in favor of congestion pricing. "He didn’t seem stuck in the usual parameters of politics."

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Whether that energy becomes actual policy hinges on nailing down stable cash, fixing operational messes, and getting Albany on board.

For now, Mamdani's free bus dream sits at the crossroads of bold promises and cold math: popular with riders, tempting to advocates, but buried under fiscal and logistical landmines. As Fritsch summed it up: "There's no shortage of ideas. The question is where exactly the money comes from and who actually has the political courage to make it happen."

Tuesday, January 13, 2026

Comrade Mamdani throws hissy-fit when NYC Council employee detained by ICE

AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Newly elected NYC comrade Mayor Zohran Mamdani (Commie) went ballistic when a City Council employee was detained by ICE on Monday during a routine immigration court appointment on Long Island.

Predictably, the legal procedure caused the communist mayor to label the detention as an "assault on our democracy" in a public statement posted to X. With fire and verve, the antisemitic mayor demanded the employee be release forthwith or he [Mamdani] will stop smiling and shake his balled up hands and say harsh words.

The illegal alien employee in question is believed to be a data analyst who worked for the council for a year and has since been sent to a detention facility in Manhattan. 

Imagine that, an illegal alien is handling sensitive data for the Big Apple. And the Mayor of New York City is outraged over law and order proceedings. 

"I am outraged to hear a New York City Council employee was detained in Nassau County by federal immigration officials at a routine immigration appointment," Mamdani fumed, his signature smirk a mere memory of a campaign gone by. "This is an assault on our democracy, on our city, and our values. I am calling for his immediate release and will continue to monitor the situation."

No, little guy. Assaults on our democracy is when our political leaders allow the crime of illegal entry into our sovereign country

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials said the arrest for entering the US illegally after entering on a B2 tourist visa in 2017 kosher as the visa required the miscreant to leave that same year. But he didn't and he was not granted the legal right to remain in the country, much less the right to work here.

To make matters worse, the employee has a criminal history including an arrest for assault. Had he assaulted Mamdani's mother, perhaps the mayor would sing a different tune, but politicians are rarely affected by their own policies.

"He had no legal right to be in the United States," department spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement, ABC News reported. "Under Secretary [Kristi] Noem, criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the United States. If you come to our country illegally and break our law, we will find you, and we will arrest you."

City officials claim that the employee was "doing everything right," and had work authorization valid until October. They said there was no indication that the detention stemmed from anything beyond his immigration status and thus, has nothing to do with his prior assault charges or any other crimes. In other words, the city officials were saying that the only thing he screwed up on was his illegal immigration status, which shouldn't get you detained by immigration enforcement, for some reason.

"DHS confirmed that this employee had gone in for a routine court appointment and was nevertheless detained. They provided no other basis for his detainment," Democratic NYC Council Speaker Julie Menin said during a press briefing on Monday. "On the contrary, he was a city council employee who is doing everything right. He went to the court when he was asked."

Doesn't 'everything right' include leaving when your visa expires? If the perp followed the required steps to remain in the US legally, this would not be a story.

Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also expressed outrage over the data analyst's detainment and was upset the law was being used against the law-breaker. Go figure.

"This is exactly what happens when immigration enforcement is weaponized," the far-left governor wrote on X. "Detaining people during routine court appearances doesn't make us safer. It erodes trust, spreads fear, and violates basic principles of fairness."

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I don't know about you, but I believe that when law-breakers with criminal histories illegally enter the country, detaining, trying, and removing them actually does make us safer. 

Enforcement of our laws need to be used against those in the country illegally. Even more so for those with a history of assault.

The real assault on democracy is the clear hypocrisy of New York City's progressive elites who get upset when their potential future voters are legally processed and removed from our sovereign nation.

Friday, December 19, 2025

Elise Stefanik Goes Nuclear on Kathy Hochul Over Qatar-Funded Propaganda in NYC Schools



The leftists in New York never sleep when it comes to indoctrinating kids, so why should we?

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and House Oversight leader James Comer (R-KY) are rightfully torching New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-uh) over some seriously shady Qatar-funded curriculum sneaking into Big Apple public schools. We're talking materials backed by the same folks who bankroll Hamas's favorite network, Al Jazeera, and some homegrown radicals who apparently think twisting the truth about 9/11 and the October 7 atrocities is just another day at the office.

The New York City Department of Education is stonewalling like pros, refusing to hand over these "teaching materials" that, according to the GOP duo, blatantly "twist the narratives" around those horrific attacks. Hochul's the only one with the power to force transparency, but surprise — crickets from the governor's mansion.

"The [NYC] DOE has refused to provide copies of teaching materials that twist the narratives of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks and the Hamas-led massacre on October 7, 2023, in Israel," Stefanik and Comer wrote in a letter obtained by the New York Post.

They're zeroing in on a cool $1 million from the Qatar Foundation International dumped into schools like P.S. 261 in Cobble Hill and P.S./I.S. 30 in Bay Ridge. Then there's Bridging Cultures, headed by Dr. Debbie Almontaser of the Muslim Community Network (MCN) fame, an outfit accused of soft-pedaling Islamist terror, fighting funding for the 9/11 Memorial, and smearing anyone who dares point out radical Islam's starring role in the attacks. 

These groups say their workshops on October 7 "erase Israeli suffering," and together they've raked in at least $14.7 million from NYC taxpayers since 2014.

"The NYC DOE partnered with Bridging Cultures to train teachers on how to speak to students about 10/7, the war in Gaza, and the anti-Israel protest movement," Stefanik and Comer said.The lawmakers are demanding contracts, full curriculum copies, and real explanations for cozying up to these partners. Hochul's team? They brushed it off, claiming Stefanik "misunderstand[s] how New York's education system and mayoral control operate." Classic deflection from the "Worst Governor in America" crowd.

This is just the latest salvo in Stefanik's full-court press on Hochul as the 2026 governor's race heats up. She's been hammering Hochul for backing incoming NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the communist jihadi who just endorsed radical activist Aber Kawas for State Assembly.

"Kathy Hochul endorsed Mamdani and now owns his latest public endorsement of radical activist Aber Kawas for New York State Assembly, a proud terrorist sympathizer and denigrator of the United States," Stefanik said in a statement. "Kawas notoriously blamed America for 9/11 that claimed the lives of thousands of New Yorkers, citing the United States' 'system of capitalism,' 'racism,' 'white supremacy,' and 'Islamophobia' as justification for the terrorist attacks that killed New Yorkers. It is clear that Mamdani owns and controls the Worst Governor in America, Kathy Hochul, as she cowardly remains silent on the anti-American and antisemitic filth spewed by the incoming Mayor and his endorsed candidates. Kathy Hochul must condemn Mamdani's endorsement of Kawas immediately."

Look, if you're letting Qatar, the same regime that hosts Hamas leaders in luxury, fund lessons on 9/11 and October 7 while radicals downplay the horror, you're not educating kids, you're grooming them for the next generation of America-hating protesters. Stefanik's spot-on here: This isn't "diversity" or "inclusion," it's straight-up malign influence, and Hochul owns every bit of it.

The Democrats' obsession with importing foreign cash and far-left nonsense into classrooms is peak insanity. Good on Stefanik and Comer for shining a light on this garbage. New York parents deserve better than having their kids taught to apologize for terrorism.

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