President Donald Trump threatened to pull federal funding from “lawless” cities, and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) responded with his most brutal attack yet.
The president signed a memo on Wednesday that states the administration “will not allow Federal tax dollars to fund cities that allow themselves to deteriorate into lawless zones,” as IJR reported. Among the places that were threatened are New York, Washington, Seattle, and Portland.
In response, Cuomo pulled together a press briefing late Wednesday, where he delivered a warning to Trump.
“He better have an army if he thinks he’s gonna walk down the street in New York. New Yorkers don’t want to have anything to do with him,” Cuomo said, according to the New York Post.
The New York governor added, “He can’t have enough bodyguards to walk through New York City, people don’t want to have anything to do with him.”
Regarding the memo, Cuomo called it “political, it is gratuitous. And it’s illegal,” adding, “But it is another attempt to kill New York City.”
However, at the end of the call, Cuomo reportedly sought to clarify his remarks about the president as he said, “My comment about the president and bodyguards in New York City, all I’m saying is that he is persona non grata in New York City. And I think he knows that.”
He continued, “And he’ll never come back to New York, because New Yorkers will never forget how gratuitously mean he has been to New Yorkers and how many times he’s tried to kill the city that gave him his start and birthed him. That’s what I meant about the bodyguards.”
Cuomo had also taken to Twitter on Wednesday evening, where he criticized Trump.
He wrote, “He is not a king. He cannot ‘defund’ NYC. It’s an illegal stunt.”
President Trump has actively sought to punish NYC since day one.
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) September 2, 2020
He let COVID ambush New York.
He refuses to provide funds that states and cities MUST receive to recover.
He is not a king. He cannot "defund" NYC.
It's an illegal stunt.
On Wednesday evening, Trump also tweeted, “My Administration will do everything in its power to prevent weak mayors and lawless cities from taking Federal dollars while they let anarchists harm people, burn buildings, and ruin lives and businesses. We’re putting them on notice today.”
