New York Mayor Eric Adams announced a draft budget of $100 billion for 2024, which includes cuts to social services, education and public libraries, and kindergarten for children under 3, which is free of charge.

Adams' announcement to impose budget restrictions caused controversy in the city and city council, particularly the cuts to social services and education budgets.

Mayor Adams had previously announced budget cuts to programs relied on by New Yorkers due to the economic crisis caused by the influx of tens of thousands of asylum seekers sent to the city by bus from other states.

'New Yorkers will suffer greatly from the budget constraint in libraries.'

The draft budget announced by Mayor Adams recommended cutting the budget for public libraries by $13 million this fiscal year and by more than $20 million next year.

Mayor Adams announced reduced working hours and the termination or closure of some programs in about 200 public libraries due to budgetary constraints. It was stated that the cuts proposed by Mayor Adams for libraries would greatly harm New Yorkers.

The proposed budget cuts for libraries, essential for people without internet access at home or for after-school tutoring and English language training, drew backlash.

Anthony W. Marx, President of the New York Public Library, said that worrying about where and what to cut kept him up at night.

A group of 13 members of the New York City Council stated that the mayor's latest budget adjustments would lead to instability in the city and said, 'The proposed restrictions are extremely cruel and dangerous.'

'New York has reached a breaking point.'

Mayor Adams, on the other hand, seemed determined. He stated the budget cuts were due to the influx of over 40,000 refugees. He said, 'New York has now come to a breaking point. We foresee that we can no longer continue to host incoming refugees on our own. The load on our infrastructure is huge. We filed an urgent request for help in New York this weekend. In this request, we urgently asked them to allocate funds to provide shelter for 500 asylum seekers.'

It is stated that New York City Mayor Adams met with the mayor of El Paso on Saturday and toured areas where refugees are known to cross the border.

El Paso is the city on the American-Mexico border where refugees have flocked the most recently.

A state of emergency was declared in El Paso recently. President Joe Biden expressed his desire to go to the southern border within the week. On the last day of the week, he went to El Paso, Texas, where thousands of South Americans have recently flocked to apply for asylum. President Biden met with border and local officials. When he arrived in Texas, he was greeted at the airport by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who had been harshly critical of immigration. Governor Abbott presented Biden with a letter on border issues.

The influx of Latin Americans who want to apply for asylum in the United States, in El Paso in particular, is one of the most important agenda items in the country. El Paso is the busiest of the nine border crossings between Mexico and the United States. Venezuelans make up a significant portion of those who reach El Paso. The US announced on Thursday that it would expand restrictions so that Venezuelans, Cubans, Nicaraguans, and Haitians caught crossing the border illegally would be quickly deported to Mexico. 

The Constitutional Court had recently decided to extend the term of Article 42, which has already expired. Article 42 came into force during former President Donald Trump's term. It allows border officials to deport any asylum applicants without looking into their legal situations in detail because of the pandemic.

After Biden's visit to El Paso, he traveled to Mexico with the Secretary of State  Antony Blinken to attend the North American Leaders' Summit. The situation in America's southern border is also expected to play an important role at the leaders' summit, which will take place on January 9 and 10.

NYC Mayor Adams Announces Nearly 1,000 new Electric Vehicles to Replace Fossil Fuel-Powered City Fleet Vehicles, Deployment of new EV Charging Infrastructure.

NYC Mayor Adams,  New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) Commissioner Dawn M. Pinnock, and New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez  announced 10.1 million dollars in federal grants to replace nearly 925 fossil fuel-powered fleet vehicles with electric vehicles  and install 315 new EV chargers across the New York City.

The $10.1 million in funding will help procure 382 Chevrolet Bolts, 360 Ford E-Transit vans, and 150 Ford F-150 E-Lightning pick-up trucks. Additionally, 25 plug-in hybrid street sweepers will be earmarked for DSNY, an important step in electrifying the city’s specialized equipment fleet.

Mayor Adams said: “When New Yorkers see cars, trucks, and vans with the ‘NYC’ logo on the side, they can rest assured that those vehicles are contributing to a greener city,” said Mayor Adams. “We are already ahead of schedule in transitioning city vehicles away from fossil fuels, and this new grant will allow us to take nearly 1,000 fossil-fuel vehicles off our roads, helping us reduce carbon emissions, make our air cleaner, and save on fuel costs.”

“We are laying the groundwork for an all-electric fleet of the future that will support critical citywide operations while benefiting the environment,” said DCAS Commissioner Pinnock. 

“New York City must lead by example, and we are grateful for these critical partnerships with the federal government to help us reach our climate and air quality goals,” said New York City Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice Executive Director Kizzy Charles-Guzman. “This investment in electric vehicles and charging infrastructure will improve the health of New Yorkers and create a more sustainable New York.”

As of September 2022, DCAS reached its 2025 goal of transitioning 4,000 vehicles in the city fleet to electric vehicles — three years ahead of schedule. Currently, the electric fleet includes a wide range of vehicle types and categories from over 200 Ford Mustang Mach Es — most of which are for law enforcement purposes — to nearly 850 GM Bolts. DCAS expects to operate over 5,000 EVs by June 2023. 

*NYC Mayor Press Release*

Even though the 2024 presidential elections are two years away, the Republican party has begun discussing its primaries. With critical candidates backed by Trump losing in the midterms held on November 8 and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis getting 60% of the votes, more and more Republican delegates have started losing hope in Trump. 

The pro-DeSantis remarks from numerous Republican members of Congress and media outlets closely associated with Trump indicate that there will be a DeSantis–Trump rivalry in the next two years. 

Impressive Background

The 44-year-old DeSantis graduated from the History Department of Yale and went to law school at Harvard. DeSantis started his professional career as a federal prosecutor, and he was also a legal advisor in the U.S. Navy. He took on the cases of U.S. soldiers who committed war crimes in the city of Fallujah in Iraq. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012 and served two terms as a member of Congress. 

His Foreign Policy Views:

DeSantis heavily criticized U.S. President Joe Biden for his decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan. He believes that NATO should adopt a strategy that focuses more on the war against terror. DeSantis condemned Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, and he's known for his tough stance on migrants. 

He believes that rivals like China and the nuclear deal with Iran should be vehemently opposed. He's known as the 'most pro-Israeli governor in the U.S.' DeSantis puts great importance on diplomatic engagement with North Korea, and he's also a politician who believes that the federal government should increase its military spending. 

With the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war, DeSantis stressed the importance of the energy independence of the U.S. and said, 'Of course, we want lower prices, but we also want a more secure energy supply and to not depend on rogue regions in the world. That's why I think we should put Russian President Vladimir Putin in his place."

Comments within the Republican Party liken the foreign policy approach of DeSantis to that of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. DeSantis also compared the handling of the situation in Ukraine under the Obama and Trump administrations. "Obama refused to send weapons to Ukraine while he was the president. We sent weapons to Ukraine when Trump took over. Putin didn't take that well. Putin annexed Crimea while Obama was president. They weren't able to take anything when Trump was at the helm. And now, President Biden has entered Ukraine." he said.

 His views on Turkey:

DeSantis didn't support the bills about the so-called Armenian Genocide while he was a Member of Congress. He criticized the events that took place in front of the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C., while he was serving in Congress in 2017. Florida Governor DeSantis met with Enes Kanter - who has a warrant arrest in  Turkey - on April 26.