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Dear John,
Make no mistake, Donald Trump’s presidency presents grave risks for New York City.
As he is sworn in today to serve as the 47th President of the United States – on the very day set aside to honor the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – New Yorkers will need to reckon honestly with that reality. We will probably start having to do that reckoning today, as Trump issues executive orders that begin to implement his dark vision.
From defunding education, housing, healthcare, and transit; to an inflation-spike caused by tariffs; to rolling back policies designed to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion; to the mass deportation of hundreds of thousands of our neighbors, protecting New York City and all who live here becomes an essential priority.
Dr. King foresaw moments like this. And at this dark moment, compelled by what Dr. King called “the fierce urgency of now”, we are called to fight both fiercely and effectively to protect our city, our neighbors and our communities.
What my office can bring to this urgent work is a clear-eyed view of the risks and threats another Trump Administration poses.
After the election, I led a roundtable [[link removed]] of civic, business, labor, religious, and community leaders to discuss how to best prepare for the policies of the incoming Administration. On the heels of that meeting, my Office released Protecting New York [[link removed]] , a report analyzing the actions of Trump’s first term as president, Trump’s 2024 campaign, and the Project 2025 blueprint to identify the most acute potential threats posed to New York City and inform conversations about how to prepare for them.
READ THE REPORT [[link removed]]
We followed this up with a deeper dive in our December Spotlight [[link removed]] into the federal funding that flows into New York City, and what could be at risk.
READ THE SPOTLIGHT [[link removed]]
Our reports find that potential federal budget cuts, like those reportedly under consideration, could cause significant harm for New York City’s public schools, hospitals, housing, and childcare. Trump’s proposed economic policies would likely cause a large spike in inflation and reduce housing production.
The potential elimination or reduction of infrastructure and climate investments could halt key transit and resiliency projects. Many New Yorkers – including immigrants, LGBTQ+, those who need abortion care, and workers seeking to organize unions – would see rollbacks to their civil rights that jeopardize their lives and safety. And beyond the City’s budget, millions of New Yorkers rely on federally-funded health care, social services, food, and retirement security.
The incoming President has also promised to undermine policies that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion – the opposite of Martin Luther King, Jr’s dream for our country.
We can’t predict exactly what the next 4 years will bring of course, but we can prepare to stand up to the bullying and authoritarianism to the greatest extent possible. I have faith New York City will once again rise to the occasion.
In the days ahead, I promise that our office will continue to speak forthrightly about the risks we face, to evaluate the impact of executive orders, to provide clear data that New Yorkers can use together, to make sure that we measure inequality as well as inefficiency, to attend to diversity, equity, and inclusion (which has helped us achieve great results for the City’s pension funds [[link removed]] ), to convene stakeholders to protect New Yorkers – and to do all we can to advance Dr. King’s vision.
Dr. King did not hesitate, of course, to speak out with moral clarity against racism, inequality, and oppression. "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter," he said. But even in dark times, he did not lose faith in the possibility of the American people to do better.
As we honor his legacy today, we too must keep that balance of clarity, resoluteness, and hope,
Brad
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Office of the New York City Comptroller
Our mailing address is:
Office of New York City Comptroller Brad Lander
1 Centre Street
New York, NY 10007
United States
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