Hochul considers Cuomo mayoralty

WE’RE ALL FRIENDS NOW: Gov. Kathy Hochul is pledging to enactment with a aboriginal Andrew Cuomo medication — if her erstwhile boss’ speculated tally for politician proves successful.

“My quality is to enactment with whoever is sitting successful office, whether it's the president of the United States, different governors oregon mayors,” the politician said erstwhile she was asked whether she supports Cuomo’s speculated tally for mayor.

“I’ll proceed connected that path,” she added.

Hochul, who was connected Long Island to unveil a connection to supply escaped lunches for each K-12 students successful the authorities (more connected that below), made the comments connected the heels of a new POLITICO report that signals Cuomo is continuing to enactment up the pieces for his tally for mayor.

The Thursday study details however Cuomo is expected to prosecute Charlie King, a spouse astatine the Manhattan-based consulting and lobbying steadfast Mercury Public Affairs.

Hochul has enjoyed a sunny narration with Mayor Eric Adams, adjacent arsenic helium battles national corruption charges that could crook into adjacent worse charges. She opted not to oust him — a powerfulness she holds — aft his September indictment, successful speech for him pushing retired scandal-scarred apical aides.

“My occupation arsenic politician of this large authorities is to enactment with whomever the voters take to beryllium the Mayor of the City of New York,” Hochul said, inactive successful effect to the Cuomo question. “I've demonstrated that. I've had a amended narration with the politician of New York than astir apt immoderate of my predecessors. It has been collaborative, due to the fact that I admit 1 happening — we some correspond the aforesaid people.”

Cuomo — whose ain petty feuds with erstwhile Mayor Bill DeBlasio person go the worldly of fable — declined to remark for this story. His squad continues to debar confirming the drips of quality astir his seemingly embryonic run for politician mean helium is really running.

(Jewish Insider besides reported successful November that Cuomo’s squad is preparing to run, and is mounting up an autarkic expenditure group.)

“This each remains premature, but Andrew Cuomo volition ever beryllium a Queens lad who loves New York, is profoundly acrophobic astir its direction, and volition ever assistance immoderate mode helium can,” Azzopardi told our workfellow Nick Reisman successful effect to the Mercury Public Affairs news. He besides insisted that “nothing has changed and neither seemingly has the rumor mill successful each its glory.”

When asked if she would fertile Adams astatine the ballot container successful June, Hochul balked — “I’m not a elector successful New York City,” she said, sidestepping the hypothetical.

The governor’s comments, astir President-elect Donald Trump, Adams and Cuomo (who Cuomo has insisted are each the same) travel arsenic she continues to awesome a non-aggression pact with, well, everyone aft rapidly abandoning a Trump-resistance posture.

If you remember, the time aft Election Day, Hochul hosted a Trump-bashing property conference with Attorney General Letitia James, wherever James said the 2 are “ready to combat backmost again.”

But instantly afterward, her stance softened, a prerogative that seems to person been solidified by her “lengthy,” “cordial” and “very productive” telephone telephone with Trump the adjacent day.

Since the pair’s cuddly chat, the politician has pledged to enactment with — not obstruct — the Trump administration’s efforts, adjacent pledging to beryllium “the archetypal to telephone up ICE” to deport immigrants who interruption the instrumentality erstwhile asked astir Trump’s wide deportation plan.

While she plays bully with the 3 criminally probed men, she inactive indispensable ward disconnected a situation from Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres and Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, who are some doing their champion to ramp up speculation they volition run against her for politician successful 2026.

“The alteration of bosom astir Cuomo is the latest flip-flop from the foremost flip-flopper successful New York politics,” Torres texted Playbook. “Just similar Kathy Hochul was for congestion pricing earlier she was against it earlier she was for it, Hochul was for Cuomo earlier she was against him earlier she was for him.”

Lawler besides chimed in: “Governor Hochul’s caller ‘Kumbaya Kathy’ enactment is laughable,” helium said. “Commonsense radical successful some parties cognize that she doesn’t enactment with, oregon perceive to, anyone who disagrees with her and her atrocious ideas. If she did, we wouldn’t beryllium dealing with congestion pricing, sanctuary cities, oregon cashless bail.” — Jason Beeferman

YOU GET A LUNCH, AND YOU GET A LUNCH ... : New York is acceptable to go the ninth authorities successful the federation that provides escaped lunches and breakfasts to each K-12 schoolhouse students, careless of their income.

“I’m proposing escaped schoolhouse meals for each pupil successful New York — giving kids the sustenance they request and putting much wealth backmost successful parents’ pockets,” the politician said today.

The announcement is the last successful a trifecta of affordability proposals Hochul is unveiling up of her State of the State.

Hochul has agelong centered affordability from her perch successful Albany, but the caller accent connected “putting wealth backmost successful your pockets” comes aft Trump’s decisive triumph implicit Vice President Kamala Harris revealed losses of Democratic enactment from moving people voters crossed astir demographic groups.

“It's conscionable a connection of our values,” Hochul said. “Helping enactment much wealth successful the pockets of parents, families successful countless ways. This is conscionable 1 of the different initiatives we’ll beryllium announcing successful my State of the State connected Tuesday.”

The governor’s caller initiative, known arsenic Universal Free School Meals, would destruct immoderate income requirements, expanding eligibility to astir 300,000 further pupils.

The concern into the state’s escaped pupil meals program, which Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas and authorities Sen. Michelle Hinchey had fought to grow implicit the past 2 years, means astir 2.7 cardinal students volition beryllium entitled to escaped meals.

“Reducing the stigma is truthful important,” Rojas said. “We've heard astir truthful galore children who are teased, families who are embarrassed to bash each this enactment and get that attention, due to the fact that they conscionable privation their kids to larn and not beryllium focused connected the challenges they’re facing,” Rojas said.

“These arbitrary cutoffs that we person for things, conscionable due to the fact that you whitethorn not suffice doesn't mean your household is not close connected the brink and struggling,” Hinchey said.

The inaugural is expected to outgo $340 cardinal and would spell into effect successful the 2025-26 schoolhouse year, according to the governor’s office. — Jason Beeferman and Madina Touré

TO BE (THERE) OR NOT TO BE: Adams is open to attending Trump’s inauguration connected Jan. 20, but his Albany state is staying put.

Hochul run spokesperson Jen Goodman contiguous confirmed the politician volition not be Trump’s swearing-in ceremonial successful Washington.

Adams and Hochul are mean Democrats who person worked good together. But Adams, who is warring a five-count national felony indictment, has trod lightly successful Trump world.

Unlike the governor, Adams was not a vocal surrogate for President Joe Biden oregon Vice President Kamala Harris erstwhile she replaced him astatine the apical of the ticket. Adams besides met with incoming Trump borderline czar Tom Homan and has been captious of however Biden has handled migration policy. (Hochul has been successful virtual alignment with the Biden medication connected the contented and has blamed Republicans for a scuttled borderline information measure past year.)

The inauguration volition coincide with Martin Luther King Jr. Day and salient New York officials typically unite astatine the Rev. Al Sharpton’s solemnisation of the civilian rights person astatine the National Action Network successful Harlem.

Hochul has not disclosed her plans for Jan. 20, but she is besides expected to present her authorities fund presumption successful Albany the pursuing day. — Nick Reisman

BITTER TAX FIGHT: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is drafting a enactment successful the soil successful the heated conflict to assistance the headdress connected the authorities and section taxation deduction, oregon SALT, arsenic House Republicans meet Saturday with Trump to reason for an increase.

Schumer wants a afloat repeal, afloat stop.

Reps. Mike Lawler, Nick LaLota, Nicole Malliotakis, Andrew Garbarino and their colleagues from New Jersey and California presumption a important hike successful the existent $10,000-per-household headdress arsenic a realistic opening bid successful the airy of the contention to travel implicit renewing the broader taxation cuts package.

But Schumer and different Democrats, including Hochul, are staking retired full restoration arsenic their position. The elder legislator previewed the Dems’ strategy Friday successful remarks to the pro-business Long Island Association.

“President-elect Trump and galore confederate and midwestern Congress members who pushed the unfair SALT headdress successful their 2017 taxation measure are present having 2nd thoughts, and we person to instrumentality vantage of that,” helium told the concern assemblage successful a suburban agelong wherever SALT is simply a precise large deal. “There’s been a batch of chatter this week astir assorted imaginable increases to Trump’s SALT limits, but remember: If we don’t renew them, past the Trump SALT headdress volition expire ... and this onslaught connected New York taxpayers ends for good.”

As House Republicans from high-tax states marque their SALT case, they’ve besides made definite to blasted the Democratic leaders of those states, including Hochul, for hefty taxes that marque the deduction truthful important successful the archetypal place. — Emily Ngo

— GUILTY PLEA: Turkish-American operation enforcement Erden Arkan pleaded blameworthy Friday to making straw donations to Mayor Eric Adams' campaign. (POLITICO)

— LESS TERRIBLE TWOS: City parents are starting a run to propulsion City Hall to money escaped cosmopolitan kid attraction for 2-year-olds. (Daily News)

— DON’T GIMME SHELTER: The metropolis is shuttering 10 migrant shelters arsenic the complaint of arrivals for asylum seekers continues to deed caller lows. (New York Post)

Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here.