WEBVTT - INTERVIEW: Michael Blake Talks Affordability In NYC, Housing Justice Plan, Cuomo's Corruption + More 0:00:00.400 --> 0:00:04.520 Wake that ass up in the morning. The Breakfast Club Morning. 0:00:04.519 --> 0:00:08.360 Everybody is DJ Envy Jess Hilarious, Charlamage, the guy we 0:00:08.400 --> 0:00:10.840 are the Breakfast Club. Lona Rosa is here as well. 0:00:11.080 --> 0:00:13.240 We got a special guest in the building. He's running 0:00:13.240 --> 0:00:16.200 for mayor of New York City. Ladies and gentlemen, Michael Blake. 0:00:16.239 --> 0:00:18.120 Welcome, brother, what's good? What's going on y'all? 0:00:18.160 --> 0:00:18.880 How you feeling? 0:00:19.040 --> 0:00:21.520 Oh man, another day above grounds of Blessed Day. We're 0:00:21.560 --> 0:00:22.120 rocking right now. 0:00:22.200 --> 0:00:22.680 And that's right. 0:00:22.760 --> 0:00:25.599 For people that don't know who you are in your background, 0:00:25.600 --> 0:00:28.600 give them a quick rundown of who Michael Blake is. 0:00:29.040 --> 0:00:31.960 Born and raised in the Bronx, New York Public schools 0:00:32.040 --> 0:00:34.720 K through twelve, PS. Seventy nine, one eighteen D with Clinton, 0:00:35.840 --> 0:00:38.280 they go step back. Full name is Michael Alexander Blake. 0:00:38.320 --> 0:00:39.519 So for the Jamaican massive. 0:00:40.040 --> 0:00:41.640 As soon as you said Alexander, they knew. 0:00:41.479 --> 0:00:44.680 Exaggerated to understandt vibes. They understand what's going on out 0:00:44.720 --> 0:00:47.600 here right now. Everybody has a Winston, Larryon or Dexter 0:00:47.680 --> 0:00:51.280 and their family right here or Donovan you know, grew 0:00:51.360 --> 0:00:55.520 up here, left went to Northwestern study Jerones and my mom. 0:00:55.840 --> 0:00:56.840 You know, blessings to my mom. 0:00:56.920 --> 0:01:00.400 Forty years she worked at a manufacturing plant, raised four boys. 0:01:01.560 --> 0:01:03.600 My dad got rest his soul. It was the Janet, 0:01:03.640 --> 0:01:07.920 the Saint Barnabas and after Northwestern, you know, life was 0:01:08.000 --> 0:01:09.920 changed forever. When I was trained by this man named 0:01:09.920 --> 0:01:12.880 Barack Obama. I was one of ten in the Yes 0:01:12.959 --> 0:01:15.800 We Can program. They trained us how to run races, 0:01:16.520 --> 0:01:19.520 went out to Michigan. We won races in Michigan and 0:01:19.560 --> 0:01:23.400 then rocked with them. You know, life was changed from there. 0:01:23.560 --> 0:01:25.160 I always joke I was the other black man in 0:01:25.160 --> 0:01:28.800 Iowa with him right there, right and then after Iowa, 0:01:29.200 --> 0:01:32.160 seven more states, went to the White House with him 0:01:32.160 --> 0:01:33.839 for two and a half years, ran all his black outreach, 0:01:33.880 --> 0:01:36.640 minority business outreach. And then I came back home because 0:01:36.680 --> 0:01:39.240 I wanted to help my people. Quite frank, I wanted 0:01:39.240 --> 0:01:40.640 to show these young cats on the block that you 0:01:40.640 --> 0:01:42.160 can grow up on the block and still make it. 0:01:42.520 --> 0:01:45.880 Go to a White House and come home. Came back home. 0:01:46.000 --> 0:01:48.640 Was elected to the Assembly for six years. My brother's 0:01:48.720 --> 0:01:50.320 keep a program for boys and young men of color, 0:01:50.440 --> 0:01:53.840 prompt pay bill raised the age. Kalleeve Broda was our constituent, 0:01:55.160 --> 0:01:56.800 but now I was about, you know, doing more. So 0:01:57.440 --> 0:01:59.640 I'm a husband, I'm a bonus father. Just having my 0:01:59.640 --> 0:02:01.480 first Father's Day is a bonus dad. So it's been 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:03.760 a blessing right there. Much love to the father's all here. 0:02:04.400 --> 0:02:07.000 I'm now for a mason. I'm a reverend. You know, 0:02:07.160 --> 0:02:08.840 we decided to hear do something special. 0:02:09.040 --> 0:02:11.360 Now, Now, why'd you putting your head into this this uh, 0:02:12.120 --> 0:02:13.120 this New York City race? 0:02:13.200 --> 0:02:16.040 I think I'm the best one prepared right now. The 0:02:16.120 --> 0:02:18.480 biggest thing people are facing is affordability. You know, New 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:21.480 York is just is crazy expensive right and at the 0:02:21.560 --> 0:02:25.880 end of the got full agreement right now. And if 0:02:25.919 --> 0:02:28.600 we want to be serious about changing the game when 0:02:28.639 --> 0:02:31.520 it comes to cost of living, then there's specific things 0:02:31.560 --> 0:02:35.400 we have to do. We have to have ending credit scores. 0:02:35.720 --> 0:02:38.160 Credit scores are being used for housing applications. Doesn't make sense. 0:02:38.560 --> 0:02:38.840 You know. 0:02:39.200 --> 0:02:42.120 We need to increase income limits on these housing applications 0:02:42.120 --> 0:02:45.000 as well. We need a local media and income because 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:47.040 area median income is not working. It doesn't make any 0:02:47.080 --> 0:02:50.120 sense that you have Westchester, Suffolk and Rocklan count in 0:02:50.160 --> 0:02:52.840 the calculation. That doesn't make sense at all. And then 0:02:52.840 --> 0:02:55.880 when we think about what's happening. I do believe you 0:02:55.960 --> 0:02:58.480 need to have someone who has White House, State House, 0:02:58.480 --> 0:03:01.239 and local experience, and I have all three because we're 0:03:01.240 --> 0:03:05.080 watching the foolishness of Trump and people are understandably scared 0:03:05.800 --> 0:03:07.520 every day, whether it be in New York or LA 0:03:07.639 --> 0:03:10.720 or anywhere in between. And so I jumped in because 0:03:10.720 --> 0:03:12.240 I want to show people, Yes, you can have the 0:03:12.280 --> 0:03:14.919 next generation of black leadership. Yes you can have someone 0:03:14.960 --> 0:03:17.280 who was qualified at all the levels. Yes you can 0:03:17.320 --> 0:03:19.600 have someone who's actually focused on affordability in a very 0:03:19.600 --> 0:03:22.160 real way. And let's be clear, you got to talk 0:03:22.160 --> 0:03:24.680 about how you're gonna pay for all this, and I said, 0:03:24.760 --> 0:03:26.959 there should be a vacant apartment tax for people that 0:03:27.000 --> 0:03:29.320 are not living in New York City. We should, you know, 0:03:29.400 --> 0:03:31.480 focus on the NYPD accesses of overtime ye at one 0:03:31.520 --> 0:03:33.679 point four billion dollars in that, you know, we can 0:03:33.760 --> 0:03:36.200 do things to actually pay the bills and actually make 0:03:36.240 --> 0:03:37.960 sure we change the game at the same time. And 0:03:37.960 --> 0:03:39.720 that's why I say to folks, you know, if you're 0:03:39.720 --> 0:03:41.640 looking for the candid who can do that, you should 0:03:41.640 --> 0:03:43.000 be ranking Michael Blake first for mayor. 0:03:43.200 --> 0:03:46.040 How did you feel about how Mayor Eric Adams we're 0:03:46.080 --> 0:03:46.520 in New York. 0:03:47.480 --> 0:03:49.160 Well, I mean I wouldn't be running if I thought 0:03:49.200 --> 0:03:50.920 he was doing his job. Mean, I mean he spent 0:03:50.960 --> 0:03:52.400 more time trying to stay at of jail than actually 0:03:52.400 --> 0:03:52.920 helping people. 0:03:53.640 --> 0:03:54.400 Right, But what do you. 0:03:54.400 --> 0:03:57.040 Think he did good? If anything? And what would you 0:03:57.160 --> 0:03:58.880 change immediately that you didn't like what he did? 0:04:00.520 --> 0:04:08.280 How much time we have, look, I think how many 0:04:08.280 --> 0:04:11.600 things can you change? I mean, you have a scenario 0:04:11.880 --> 0:04:17.159 where you had unconstitutional stopping frisk on the rise, You 0:04:17.279 --> 0:04:20.200 had a culture of corruption, you had a dynamic where 0:04:20.240 --> 0:04:24.440 they were trading dynamics when it comes to ice raids 0:04:24.440 --> 0:04:26.720 for him to again stay out of jail. That's not 0:04:26.760 --> 0:04:28.000 me saying that's just the reality. 0:04:29.680 --> 0:04:31.160 You have. One out of eight New. 0:04:31.120 --> 0:04:35.560 York City public school students are homeless. Cost of going up, 0:04:35.600 --> 0:04:38.200 I mean, like the list goes on on. I think 0:04:38.240 --> 0:04:41.760 that you have a scenario where there was great talent 0:04:42.040 --> 0:04:45.440 hired in I think sometimes what happens is that the 0:04:45.839 --> 0:04:48.240 very select few who made a lot of mistakes cast 0:04:48.279 --> 0:04:52.000 a shadow on everything else. You know, but you can't 0:04:52.000 --> 0:04:54.280 ignore that when you have a dynamic where people were 0:04:54.279 --> 0:04:59.120 getting promotions because of you know, sex deals at a 0:04:59.320 --> 0:05:04.039 YPD and people getting paid off. That's nonsense, right, and 0:05:04.080 --> 0:05:05.560 real talk. It makes it harder for all of us 0:05:05.600 --> 0:05:07.039 that are black, that are trying to do some things 0:05:07.560 --> 0:05:09.360 because you're going these conversations like, well, I'm not sure 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:11.160 if the city is ready for the next thing. Oh 0:05:11.480 --> 0:05:14.520 it is, we are not him. And if we want 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:17.240 to talk through how do we do this differently? Then 0:05:17.240 --> 0:05:18.440 you got to change the game on this. 0:05:18.720 --> 0:05:21.840 I got to ask you what the hell is cross endorsing? Right, 0:05:21.839 --> 0:05:24.400 because it came out today that you are cross endorsing 0:05:24.480 --> 0:05:29.440 zo Ran mcdonnie, What the hell is that? That's kind 0:05:29.440 --> 0:05:31.560 of it feels like, look, we're going to battle together, 0:05:31.640 --> 0:05:33.600 but we're gonna be friends while we do it. 0:05:33.680 --> 0:05:35.920 Like what is crossingdors You break it down. 0:05:36.880 --> 0:05:37.800 That's the vibes right there. 0:05:37.839 --> 0:05:41.919 So all right, so eleven of us are Democrats running 0:05:41.920 --> 0:05:44.240 in the primer. Eleven of us are Democrats running in 0:05:44.240 --> 0:05:47.080 the primery? Correct, because we have ranked choice voting in 0:05:47.080 --> 0:05:48.159 which started four years ago? 0:05:48.200 --> 0:05:50.280 What is choice voting? For people that don't know? 0:05:50.400 --> 0:05:53.520 So in New York City you don't have to and 0:05:53.560 --> 0:05:56.760 you shouldn't just vote for one person. You should actually 0:05:56.960 --> 0:06:00.480 rank five people. So whoever is your first choice when 0:06:00.520 --> 0:06:02.320 you go to vote, which if that means if you 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:04.640 vote in absentee or if you're voting an early voting 0:06:04.680 --> 0:06:07.000 early voting and goes to the twenty second, or if 0:06:07.000 --> 0:06:09.520 you wait till the twenty fourth, your first choice, you 0:06:09.520 --> 0:06:13.000 should circle in this is my first choice, your second choice, 0:06:13.000 --> 0:06:14.479 second choice, all the way through. 0:06:14.839 --> 0:06:17.279 Because now the. 0:06:17.160 --> 0:06:20.040 Only way someone can win is if you get fifty 0:06:20.080 --> 0:06:24.320 percent plus one of votes. So whoever is the lowest 0:06:24.360 --> 0:06:28.000 vote getter in the first round gets knocked out. If 0:06:28.320 --> 0:06:31.320 Envy says, you know what, Michael Blake is my first choice, 0:06:31.760 --> 0:06:35.000 and then you know, Raven Robinson's my second choice, and 0:06:35.240 --> 0:06:38.320 hand is my third choice, Michael Blake gets knocked out, 0:06:38.360 --> 0:06:41.320 then Raven then gets the vote. So it actually gives 0:06:41.320 --> 0:06:43.640 the voter of New York more power because back in 0:06:43.680 --> 0:06:46.039 the day, if you only voted for one person and 0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:47.800 that person doesn't make it through a runoff, then you're 0:06:47.800 --> 0:06:51.040 pretty much get done. So what we're saying right here, 0:06:51.800 --> 0:06:54.760 in particular, when it comes to zon ran Zorn and 0:06:54.800 --> 0:06:58.279 I talking about affordability the most right we're real clear 0:06:58.400 --> 0:07:01.080 on if we're serious about the the number one issue 0:07:01.080 --> 0:07:03.000 that New York is talking about is that it is 0:07:03.040 --> 0:07:05.800 crazy expensive in the city. So who has the plans 0:07:05.839 --> 0:07:08.279 around that? And I've said, you know, I'm making it 0:07:08.279 --> 0:07:10.000 clear thinks are on there's gonna be my number two. 0:07:10.040 --> 0:07:11.920 You know, I'm ranking him as my number two. You know, 0:07:12.200 --> 0:07:14.240 grateful that he is cross endorsing us as well, because 0:07:14.240 --> 0:07:16.200 he's also making it clear we got to break from 0:07:16.240 --> 0:07:17.960 the corruption of Cuomo and we got to make it 0:07:17.960 --> 0:07:19.280 clear that you can address affordability. 0:07:19.280 --> 0:07:19.920 You can do both. 0:07:20.280 --> 0:07:23.120 Right, So we're gonna still figure out who's the rest 0:07:23.160 --> 0:07:25.040 of the ballot. You know, I think I'm pretty clear 0:07:25.080 --> 0:07:27.320 on the rest of that team, because you have other 0:07:27.360 --> 0:07:30.400 great candidates, you know, Adrian Adams, you know zeld Nomyrie 0:07:30.400 --> 0:07:32.120 brid Lander do out here, you know, doing their thing. 0:07:32.880 --> 0:07:34.200 But I want to make it very clear in New 0:07:34.280 --> 0:07:37.880 York City, you should rank Michael Blake first, especially for 0:07:38.360 --> 0:07:39.840 all the folks out here are still trying to make 0:07:39.880 --> 0:07:43.280 the decisions. But then the cross endorsement is saying, I 0:07:43.360 --> 0:07:44.880 want you to know that there are other people on 0:07:44.880 --> 0:07:46.200 the team that I also want to make sure on 0:07:46.200 --> 0:07:46.640 your ballot. 0:07:47.200 --> 0:07:49.640 Now, question, this is just double the advocate, right, Talk 0:07:49.680 --> 0:07:53.960 to me, why wouldn't they rank you number one? And 0:07:54.000 --> 0:07:58.520 you tell everybody to rank Eric Adams number two. I 0:07:58.640 --> 0:08:02.280 tell you why, if Zoran is your biggest competition, why 0:08:02.280 --> 0:08:04.000 would you rank him to and not rank somebody that 0:08:04.320 --> 0:08:06.840 is really no competition number two? 0:08:06.880 --> 0:08:08.240 Because it's easy to win. 0:08:08.280 --> 0:08:10.400 It's kind of like you know when you're playing basketball, right, 0:08:10.480 --> 0:08:13.120 I wanted the Knicks to play the paces. 0:08:13.800 --> 0:08:15.000 Come on, it's too soon. 0:08:15.240 --> 0:08:17.000 I didn't think the Pacers were gonna rock them. I 0:08:17.000 --> 0:08:19.240 don't think nobody did, but soon you would want that 0:08:19.280 --> 0:08:21.200 because you feel like that would be an easier win. 0:08:21.680 --> 0:08:27.160 Well, so fair, So the one two is not necessarily 0:08:27.960 --> 0:08:31.920 you are trying to battle with that person. It's really 0:08:31.960 --> 0:08:36.040 making it clear to your voters that if I don't 0:08:36.120 --> 0:08:38.480 keep going, this is who I want you to make 0:08:38.520 --> 0:08:41.760 your next person. So like, this is the allegiance that 0:08:41.760 --> 0:08:43.840 we want to see happen here. So when people are 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:47.360 thinking through, okay, help me to understand this. And this 0:08:47.480 --> 0:08:50.320 happened last few days. You know, first debate we had 0:08:51.160 --> 0:08:54.160 everybody Times Post Daily News said that I want the debate. 0:08:54.240 --> 0:08:56.120 It was real clear that we handled the debate stage. 0:08:56.480 --> 0:08:57.720 Now you have a lot of folks that are coming 0:08:57.720 --> 0:09:00.880 through saying okay, I'm now trying to decide who's my five. 0:09:01.440 --> 0:09:04.120 So I want everybody in the squad to understand if 0:09:04.160 --> 0:09:07.120 you are saying we can do this differently and you 0:09:07.160 --> 0:09:09.240 don't want to go back to Cuomo you want something different, 0:09:09.440 --> 0:09:11.559 then you should rank me first. You shrank Michael Blake first. 0:09:11.960 --> 0:09:13.199 But then I need you to fill out the rest 0:09:13.200 --> 0:09:16.040 of the ballot because if you don't, you actually helping 0:09:16.080 --> 0:09:19.800 other cats. Gotcha, And that's the key right now and 0:09:19.840 --> 0:09:23.360 the reason why we keep drilling this home. I made 0:09:23.400 --> 0:09:25.400 a decision on who was most aligned with me on 0:09:25.440 --> 0:09:25.920 that issue. 0:09:25.960 --> 0:09:26.920 And why don't you like Cuomo? 0:09:27.040 --> 0:09:28.680 I mean, I've seen you take a shot at Cuomo 0:09:28.760 --> 0:09:30.400 in his past and all the things that he did 0:09:30.440 --> 0:09:32.320 with what's your major problem with Cuoma? 0:09:32.360 --> 0:09:34.680 I mean, fifteen thousand people died in COVID nursing homes 0:09:34.720 --> 0:09:36.800 because the policies that he did for a book deal. 0:09:36.840 --> 0:09:39.160 You had thirteen women who credibly said that he sexually 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:42.040 assaulted them and had a toxic environment. You have a 0:09:42.120 --> 0:09:45.120 dynamic where he said shucking job in two thousand and 0:09:45.160 --> 0:09:47.240 eight and made it seem like it wasn't about Barack Obama. 0:09:47.280 --> 0:09:49.280 Barack Obama was the only black candidate that was real 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:54.840 in that scenario. He consistently is laying out all the 0:09:54.880 --> 0:09:57.840 bad things about other people, and it's actually not talking 0:09:57.920 --> 0:10:00.400 through what is good right here close hospital when it 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:03.880 comes to addressing the mental health crisis. So we don't 0:10:03.880 --> 0:10:05.280 need to go back to a name, because because you 0:10:05.320 --> 0:10:07.040 recognize the name, it's now time to change the game. 0:10:07.440 --> 0:10:09.680 And so I'm saying, the folks, here's the difference you have. 0:10:10.679 --> 0:10:13.720 He's saying that when I talk about public safety, I'm 0:10:13.720 --> 0:10:16.439 saying there should be a thousand mental health professionals instead 0:10:16.480 --> 0:10:18.600 of NYPD, because the NYPD will tell you they weren't 0:10:18.600 --> 0:10:21.120 trained on doing that. You want to help these kids, 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:23.400 We should have civics, financial literacy, and mental health for 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:25.800 every student before they graduate. You actually want to help 0:10:25.800 --> 0:10:28.040 people with their housing. Let's talk about what's going on 0:10:28.080 --> 0:10:30.240 with credit scores and income limits. And at the end 0:10:30.280 --> 0:10:34.240 of the day, Andrew Cormo, who real talk wasn't even 0:10:34.280 --> 0:10:35.840 living in New York City for a minute, mean pretty 0:10:35.880 --> 0:10:38.200 much was in Westchester the whole time. Now is saying 0:10:38.520 --> 0:10:42.560 I should come back because he thinks he's the best option. Nah, 0:10:42.600 --> 0:10:44.440 And I think people got to really ask themselves. Like 0:10:45.520 --> 0:10:49.080 during COVID, his policies were killing people during COVID, I 0:10:49.120 --> 0:10:50.880 was with World sun kid feeding people. 0:10:51.920 --> 0:10:53.760 That's right, That's what people got to be asking themselves. 0:10:53.800 --> 0:10:54.280 You're right now. 0:10:54.280 --> 0:10:58.319 You mentioned the police crime in New York City. It 0:10:58.360 --> 0:11:01.000 seems like it's on the rise, right if you've. 0:11:00.640 --> 0:11:02.280 Been out and about. I think last week two people 0:11:02.320 --> 0:11:03.600 got shot in Times Square. 0:11:03.360 --> 0:11:05.520 Right, I mean that's the I mean, the numbers say otherwise. 0:11:05.559 --> 0:11:07.360 But the feeling is, the feeling is feeling. 0:11:07.320 --> 0:11:10.480 It feels, it feels horrible. What would you do for crime? 0:11:10.520 --> 0:11:14.079 We had Zoran up here? He says he wouldn't necessarily 0:11:14.320 --> 0:11:16.320 defund the police, but he said he would take some 0:11:16.360 --> 0:11:18.720 finances from the police and give it to different agencies 0:11:18.760 --> 0:11:20.920 and things like that. What would be your take on that? 0:11:21.040 --> 0:11:24.280 Number one thing we have to do anybody that's walking 0:11:24.280 --> 0:11:27.200 the block, whether if I'm in the Bronx at third 0:11:27.240 --> 0:11:29.640 av of one four nine, if I'm in Harlem at 0:11:29.640 --> 0:11:33.319 one two five and lex, the mental health crisis is real, correct, 0:11:33.440 --> 0:11:35.760 you know it's it's like a zombie land out here 0:11:35.800 --> 0:11:40.840 right now. And those cats need help. They don't need 0:11:40.840 --> 0:11:43.440 to be locked up, right, And so what I say 0:11:43.480 --> 0:11:47.000 to everyone, my main priority for public safety, we should 0:11:47.040 --> 0:11:50.080 have a thousand mental health professionals on subways and streets 0:11:50.600 --> 0:11:54.959 to help them immediately, as opposed to the NYPD who 0:11:55.000 --> 0:11:58.400 is saying we're not trained on this. I came with 0:11:58.480 --> 0:12:00.719 that number because a thousand istually the number for the 0:12:00.760 --> 0:12:03.480 National Guard that's been put out there. National Guard and 0:12:03.520 --> 0:12:06.760 more police standing there is actually not fixing anything right. 0:12:06.960 --> 0:12:08.680 And I want to be clear, I got much respect 0:12:08.679 --> 0:12:12.240 for those that serve in uniform. But if someone is 0:12:12.280 --> 0:12:16.240 struggling in need help them and they're telling you we're 0:12:16.240 --> 0:12:19.680 not trained on this, so you do that, then people 0:12:19.679 --> 0:12:21.840 feel safer to get on subways, they feel safer to 0:12:21.840 --> 0:12:24.800 go outside. And we got to focus on involuntary commitment. 0:12:25.040 --> 0:12:27.440 When you know someone is clearly a threat to themselves, 0:12:28.000 --> 0:12:30.120 why would you just let them be there? And so 0:12:30.200 --> 0:12:33.319 if you do that, then you can do two different things. 0:12:33.480 --> 0:12:36.040 You're gonna have police with body cameras on, so it's 0:12:36.040 --> 0:12:40.520 actually accountability on both sides. And simultaneously then you can 0:12:40.600 --> 0:12:42.199 have more cops that actually walk in the street and 0:12:42.240 --> 0:12:45.640 doing precision policing in neighborhoods that need to help. That's 0:12:45.640 --> 0:12:50.200 what folks need right now. And look, I'm that cat 0:12:50.240 --> 0:12:54.320 who had I enjoyed police brutality twice right, Once in 0:12:54.400 --> 0:12:57.120 high school where a cop said, I want to deal 0:12:57.120 --> 0:12:59.480 with Clinton High School. Once where a cops said that 0:12:59.559 --> 0:13:03.400 they hurt me yelling at them while driving the other direction. 0:13:03.760 --> 0:13:06.120 I said, okay, so we're just looking to pick a. 0:13:06.040 --> 0:13:06.800 Fight right now, right. 0:13:07.559 --> 0:13:11.680 And then when I was an assemblyman, there was a 0:13:11.720 --> 0:13:14.839 fight that was happening. We de escalating the fight. They 0:13:14.880 --> 0:13:16.840 grabbed me. They tossed me against the gate, and another 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:19.199 cop comes over and says, get off of him, get 0:13:19.240 --> 0:13:19.600 off of him. 0:13:19.640 --> 0:13:21.280 He's the assemblement. And I said, what would happen if 0:13:21.280 --> 0:13:22.720 you want to recognize me? Right? 0:13:24.080 --> 0:13:27.520 Even still, I'm saying you need to have police out here, 0:13:27.800 --> 0:13:31.080 but it's got to be smarter policing, right. The last 0:13:31.080 --> 0:13:34.880 thing that has to happen repeat offenders. Right, there's an 0:13:34.920 --> 0:13:37.440 underline current. If we help people make and keep more 0:13:37.480 --> 0:13:39.360 money in the front end, then we're not talking about 0:13:39.360 --> 0:13:42.360 people shoplifting on the back end. So if you do 0:13:42.400 --> 0:13:44.200 those steps, then you have more cops to come back 0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:45.720 on the force, actually try and do it the right way. 0:13:46.480 --> 0:13:48.960 I don't know any person that doesn't want to get 0:13:49.000 --> 0:13:53.240 home cop and community. And if we're serious about the 0:13:53.240 --> 0:13:56.800 fundamental issue around public safety. To me, it is underline 0:13:56.800 --> 0:13:57.600 around mental health. 0:13:57.800 --> 0:14:00.360 Well, what do you say to people, because sitting here 0:14:00.440 --> 0:14:03.200 talking to you, you explain what you mean when you 0:14:03.280 --> 0:14:05.480 say defund the police, and we understand that. But on 0:14:05.559 --> 0:14:08.520 phase value, someone like a Cuomo, he shoots back at 0:14:08.520 --> 0:14:10.480 you guys with the fact that you say defund the 0:14:10.480 --> 0:14:13.480 police because the messaging is not interpreted the right way. 0:14:13.760 --> 0:14:15.840 How do y'all get around that in this race? Because 0:14:15.880 --> 0:14:17.800 people here defund the police and they don't understand what 0:14:17.840 --> 0:14:18.520 you just said to. 0:14:18.400 --> 0:14:21.080 Me, and I'll remind them that. In twenty twenty, Andrew 0:14:21.160 --> 0:14:23.160 Clomo set out of his mind at a press conference 0:14:23.160 --> 0:14:27.680 that defund the police is a legitimate movement. Andrew Cuomo's 0:14:27.720 --> 0:14:29.960 hoping folks have amnesia, so I want to help remind 0:14:30.000 --> 0:14:32.800 them that Obamacare can help them with that. He gets 0:14:32.840 --> 0:14:36.080 real confused about things. So when we talk through it, 0:14:36.520 --> 0:14:39.560 there is no one out here saying eliminate the police 0:14:39.600 --> 0:14:44.000 department right when they're using the phrase, it's about how 0:14:44.040 --> 0:14:46.640 do you change the funding that's happening to focus on 0:14:46.680 --> 0:14:51.600 preventative measures, violence interruption work, you know, life camp, save 0:14:51.640 --> 0:14:54.200 our streets until freedom with To me, I mean you 0:14:54.240 --> 0:14:56.040 got so many dope groups that are doing that work. 0:14:56.640 --> 0:14:58.800 That's what people are really trying to say. And at 0:14:58.880 --> 0:15:01.640 the end of the day, what we're talking through is 0:15:01.880 --> 0:15:05.600 everybody wants to be safe. So we can keep talking 0:15:05.600 --> 0:15:07.880 about this random one liner is or how do you 0:15:07.880 --> 0:15:08.560 actually fix this? 0:15:09.080 --> 0:15:09.240 You know? 0:15:09.640 --> 0:15:13.360 My thing has always been when we talk about budgets, right, yeah, 0:15:14.440 --> 0:15:16.520 and people say defund the police, to take money from 0:15:16.520 --> 0:15:18.960 the police, But I always feel like we find money 0:15:19.000 --> 0:15:19.600 for so many. 0:15:19.520 --> 0:15:20.680 Different everything that we want. 0:15:20.720 --> 0:15:22.560 If we want to start an agency where we have 0:15:22.640 --> 0:15:24.960 more mental health professionals on the street, why don't we 0:15:24.960 --> 0:15:27.520 pay for it. I'd just seen somebody spend forty five 0:15:27.560 --> 0:15:30.200 to forty eight million dollars on a parade that only. 0:15:30.000 --> 0:15:31.000 Had five people out there. 0:15:31.680 --> 0:15:33.720 So if we can find all that and even with 0:15:33.800 --> 0:15:36.400 congestion pricing, right, what are your thoughts on congestion pricing? 0:15:37.280 --> 0:15:39.600 The intent congestion pricing is the right intent because at 0:15:39.600 --> 0:15:41.960 the end of the day, it was to reduce traffic 0:15:41.960 --> 0:15:45.520 and improve the environment. The implementation was clunky, right, they 0:15:45.520 --> 0:15:48.240 didn't do that right. But at the end of the day, 0:15:48.320 --> 0:15:50.800 when we think about from a budget perspective, a budget 0:15:50.840 --> 0:15:51.760 showed someone's values. 0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:53.040 There's no way. 0:15:53.080 --> 0:15:55.160 We can say at one hundred and fifteen billion dollar budget, 0:15:55.160 --> 0:15:57.280 we can't find what we got to pay for. And 0:15:57.320 --> 0:16:00.720 so when I'm talking through, yes, you can have that 0:16:00.760 --> 0:16:03.840 one point four billion dollars excessive overtime at NYPD and 0:16:03.920 --> 0:16:07.080 put that towards the kids. Yes, you can actually reclaim 0:16:07.120 --> 0:16:09.320 back to two billion dollars of unclaimed fees and fines 0:16:09.360 --> 0:16:12.240 and actually help the community. We can do these things 0:16:12.520 --> 0:16:14.000 and the reason why it's not happening is because the 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:16.160 lack of leadership into the early question about Eric Adams. 0:16:16.160 --> 0:16:18.160 We've got to ask ourselves for four years, what was 0:16:18.160 --> 0:16:20.800 he doing on this? That's why we're all running because 0:16:20.800 --> 0:16:24.440 it's not working. And so when I talk through, how 0:16:24.480 --> 0:16:27.640 do you make sure that you help nonprofits get funding 0:16:27.760 --> 0:16:30.240 up front so they're not waiting for reimbursements on the 0:16:30.280 --> 0:16:32.680 back end. What are you doing to make sure that 0:16:32.760 --> 0:16:34.920 our immigrants being protected? Because yes, we're gonna stay as 0:16:34.960 --> 0:16:37.240 a sanctuary city because that's the right thing to do. Yes, 0:16:37.240 --> 0:16:39.440 we're gonna put safe havens on our schools because we're 0:16:39.440 --> 0:16:41.600 gonna ban ice from coming on in. You have to 0:16:41.640 --> 0:16:43.520 put that kind of money in place to actually help 0:16:43.560 --> 0:16:48.240 people because to the underlying piece. You got Trump, and 0:16:48.280 --> 0:16:50.760 you gotta worry about Medicaid cuts and Medicare cuts and 0:16:50.760 --> 0:16:52.720 all these things that are happening. And that's why when 0:16:52.720 --> 0:16:55.080 people are saying to me, all right, Michael Blake, why 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:58.000 you I'm seeing these other names. There's a lot of 0:16:58.000 --> 0:17:00.760 people out here why you. You got to ask yourself 0:17:00.840 --> 0:17:04.000 January first, next year, who is best prepared to make 0:17:04.000 --> 0:17:07.080 sure we can actually battle against Trump, help our city, 0:17:07.320 --> 0:17:09.640 but also keep our focus on what we're doing around 0:17:09.640 --> 0:17:10.800 afford the billion people of color. 0:17:10.920 --> 0:17:13.600 Now, you talk about congestion price and you said it's 0:17:13.600 --> 0:17:17.159 a great idea, right, but executed horribly. My question to 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:19.720 you is, I feel like we go for the money 0:17:19.760 --> 0:17:21.399 before we care about people's feelings. 0:17:21.480 --> 0:17:21.600 Right. 0:17:21.600 --> 0:17:23.320 People are scared to take the train, right, They're scared 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:24.960 to take the bus, And you even said that it 0:17:25.000 --> 0:17:26.360 seems like sometimes it's wild. 0:17:26.160 --> 0:17:27.240 Wild West out there. Right. 0:17:27.400 --> 0:17:29.199 So you're forcing me to take the train in the 0:17:29.240 --> 0:17:32.240 bus when I have to because I can't afford congestion pricing. 0:17:32.240 --> 0:17:34.040 But you're forced. 0:17:33.800 --> 0:17:36.280 Me to get on the trains with sometimes mentally ill 0:17:36.359 --> 0:17:39.800 people and fighting for myself. But then also you're forcing 0:17:39.840 --> 0:17:42.000