NYC mayoral candidates take aim at Trump during Al Sharpton-led forum: Existential threat

Mayoral candidates all but declared war on President Trump during a forum organized by the Rev.Al Sharpton Thursday – with frontrunner Andrew Cuomo labeling the Republican commander in chief an “existential threat.”The 47th president — who has pulled back nearly $200 million in funding from the city — was dumped on during a series of sit-down interviews between City Hall hopefuls and the influential civil rights leader at the National Action Network Convention in Manhattan.“When President Trump puts his finger in your chest, the worst thing you can do is step backwards,” said Cuomo, who as governor frequently attacked the Republican president during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“What you have to do is step forward.And that’s what we have always done,” said the three-term Democrat, who resigned in 2021 while facing sexual harassment allegations, which he fiercely denies.“He’s huffed and he’s puffed, but he’s just never going to blow in the door of New York,” he said of Trump.While he called Trump an “existential threat,” to the Big Apple, Cuomo then got existential himself.“No.

What if I die?” the 67-year-old replied when asked if would promise to serve a full term if elected mayor.“Short of death, I commit,” he then added.City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and state Sen.Jessica Ramos — the only two women in the race — got the most raucous cheers during their appearances, and also ripped Trump.“New York needs a change.

New York is bleeding and hemorrhaging right now and we need something different.We need a touch from a woman that can get this thing done right,” said the council speaker, as she took a shot at Mayor Eric Adams.“Somebody not afraid of Donald Trump nor (who) will hawk his people’s books,” she added, referencing Adams holding up FBI Director Kash Patel’s book during a speech Wednesday about his federal case getting tossed for good.The packed crowd also erupted when Ramos said she was armed and read...