Latest news with #pro-Trump
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ex-NYC Mayor Eric Adams campaign vendor accused of SoHo assault donated to him at ritzy fundraiser
NEW YORK — Trent Pool, a conservative political consultant accused of assaulting his girlfriend in a Manhattan hotel, donated the legal max amount to Mayor Eric Adams' reelection effort as part of a fundraiser last year — and was months later hired by the campaign to do petitioning work, the Daily News has learned. The fundraiser itself may also have violated campaign finance rules as Adams' team failed to disclose cryptocurrency tycoon Brock Pierce's role in hosting the event. Pool, who's known for managing petitioning for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s failed 2024 presidential campaign, was arrested in April 2024 on charges alleging he strangled his partner at the SoHo Grand Hotel. As reported by Gothamist this week, Adams' campaign paid Pool some $175,000 this spring to do petitioning work to secure an independent line for the mayor on November's general election ballot. Pool's hire came as he was in the middle of fighting his assault case — which remains pending in Manhattan Criminal Court — and Adams' campaign responded to Gothamist's report by saying it'd cut ties with Pool, adding that the mayor was unaware of the charges against him and 'has never had contact with' him. Records obtained by The News via a Freedom of Information Law request nonetheless reveal that months before being hired, Pool contributed $2,100, the legal max, to Adams' reelection campaign as part of an exclusive fundraiser in Puerto Rico attended by the mayor. The Dec. 10, 2024 fundraiser, hosted at Pierce's San Juan mansion, raised a total of $13,404 from nine individuals, including Pool, the records show. As required, the records were submitted to the city Campaign Finance Board by Adams' team to disclose all fundraiser attendees who gave in connection with the event. Thomas Keniff, Pool's criminal lawyer, declined to comment Friday on his client's participation in the fundraiser, but said he 'has supported and donated to Eric Adams, along with many other common sense candidates nationwide.' 'As to his pending criminal charges, Mr. Pool maintains his innocence and looks forward to being fully exonerated,' Keniff added. Pool's case is slated to go to trial next month. 'Mayor Adams has no recollection of ever meeting Trent Pool in any setting, but the campaign sometimes acts independently on hiring independent contractors,' an Adams campaign spokesman said when asked about his interactions with Trent and reliance on his services. Pierce, a pro-Trump investor and billionaire, threw the fundraiser for Adams while the mayor was on the island for a cryptocurrency conference. The private event came as Adams was still under indictment on federal corruption charges that were months later dismissed at the request of President Donald Trump's Department of Justice as part of a deal many believe has left the mayor beholden to Trump's agenda. Given that Pierce's event raised more than $500, Adams' team under campaign finance law was required to either report Pierce as a so-called 'intermediary' or pay him for hosting the shindig. However, Adams' campaign didn't report Pierce as an intermediary and there is no record it paid Pierce for hosting, records show. A spokesman for the Campaign Finance Board declined to comment. Vito Pitta, Adams' campaign compliance attorney, didn't immediately return a request for comment. The revelations about Pool — who was reportedly spotted at the U.S. Capitol during the deadly pro-Trump Jan. 6, 2021 attack, though he denies participating in any violence — come as Adams is kickstarting his independent run for reelection amid various headwinds. Continuing to face political fallout from his indictment, Adams held a formal reelection campaign launch rally at City Hall Thursday, where he assailed the presumptive Democratic mayoral nominee, Zohran Mamdani, as unfit for office. Several of Adams' longtime supporters joined him at the event, including Sheikh Musa Drammeh, a Bronx community leader who called him the 'moral clarity mayor.' -------- —With Josephine Stratman
New York Post
20 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Trump gets unexpected endorsement from sidelines of WH briefing: ‘I like him!'
WASHINGTON — President Trump on Friday picked up an unexpected endorsement when a press photographer shouted, 'Trump 2028!' as the commander in chief took reporters' questions in the White House. Girish Gaur, who works for Lindell TV, an outlet founded by pro-Trump MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, was standing off to the side of the stage when he raised his fist in the air and yelled his support for the president, surprising officials and reporters. 'I like him!' Trump responded. 'He's working the cameras.' 4 Photographer Girish Gaur (far right) raises his fist in the air during his sudden exclamation of support for President Trump at a White House press conference Friday. AP 4 Trump quipped, 'I like him.' Yuri Gripas/UPI/Shutterstock 4 The photographer was responding to an exchange in which the president noted that no illegal immigrants were released into the US after being apprehended at the southwest border in May. Yuri Gripas/UPI/Shutterstock Gaur was responding to an exchange in which the president noted that no illegal immigrants were released into the US after being apprehended at the southwest border in May. Lindell TV's anchors include former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and the new network also has a dedicated White House correspondent, Cara Castronuova. Gaur told The Post after the briefing that he considers himself 'kind of an activist' rather than a reporter. 'I think as a president, he's doing a great job,' said Gaur, who described himself as politically active for about eight years. 'I think he has, I would say, brought back America,' said the New York resident, who previously lived in Texas. 4 The photographer who shouted support for Trump describes himself as an 'activist.' AP Gaur's unorthodox disruption was minor compared to some previous incidents involving presidents. Colorful characters among the press corps have included the late Trude Feldman, who interviewed eight presidents despite getting caught rummaging through press-office desks and allegedly filching from peers everything from cakes to a winter coat, and Jeff Gannon, who was exposed as a former gay escort in 2005 after asking fawning questions of then-President George W. Bush.
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ex-Adams campaign vendor accused of SoHo assault donated to him at ritzy fundraiser
Trent Pool, a conservative political consultant accused of assaulting his girlfriend in a Manhattan hotel, donated the legal max amount to Mayor Adams' reelection effort as part of a fundraiser last year — and was months later hired by the campaign to do petitioning work, the Daily News has learned. The fundraiser itself may also have violated campaign finance rules as Adams' team failed to disclose cryptocurrency tycoon Brock Pierce's role in hosting the event. Pool, who's known for managing petitioning for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s failed 2024 presidential campaign, was arrested in April 2024 on charges alleging he strangled his partner at the SoHo Grand Hotel. As reported by Gothamist this week, Adams' campaign paid Pool some $175,000 this spring to do petitioning work to secure an independent line for the mayor on November's general election ballot. Pool's hire came as he was in the middle of fighting his assault case — which remains pending in Manhattan Criminal Court — and Adams' campaign responded to Gothamist's report by saying it'd cut ties with Pool, adding that the mayor was unaware of the charges against him and 'has never had contact with' him. Records obtained by The News via a Freedom of Information Law request nonetheless reveal that months before being hired, Pool contributed $2,100, the legal max, to Adams' reelection campaign as part of an exclusive fundraiser in Puerto Rico attended by the mayor. The Dec. 10, 2024 fundraiser, hosted at Pierce's San Juan mansion, raised a total of $13,404 from nine individuals, including Pool, the records show. As required, the records were submitted to the city Campaign Finance Board by Adams' team to disclose all fundraiser attendees who gave in connection with the event. Thomas Keniff, Pool's criminal lawyer, declined to comment Friday on his client's participation in the fundraiser, but said he 'has supported and donated to Eric Adams, along with many other common sense candidates nationwide.' 'As to his pending criminal charges, Mr. Pool maintains his innocence and looks forward to being fully exonerated,' Keniff added. Pool's case is slated to go to trial next month. 'Mayor Adams has no recollection of ever meeting Trent Pool in any setting, but the campaign sometimes acts independently on hiring independent contractors,' an Adams campaign spokesman said when asked about his interactions with Trent and reliance on his services. Pierce, a pro-Trump investor and billionaire, threw the fundraiser for Adams while the mayor was on the island for a cryptocurrency conference. The private event came as Adams was still under indictment on federal corruption charges that were months later dismissed at the request of President Trump's Department of Justice as part of a deal many believe has left the mayor beholden to Trump's agenda. Given that Pierce's event raised more than $500, Adams' team under campaign finance law was required to either report Pierce as a so-called 'intermediary' or pay him for hosting the shindig. However, Adams' campaign didn't report Pierce as an intermediary and there is no record it paid Pierce for hosting, records show. A spokesman for the Campaign Finance Board declined to comment. Vito Pitta, Adams' campaign compliance attorney, didn't immediately return a request for comment. The revelations about Pool — who was reportedly spotted at the U.S. Capitol during the deadly pro-Trump Jan. 6, 2021 attack, though he denies participating in any violence — come as Adams is kickstarting his independent run for reelection amid various headwinds. Continuing to face political fallout from his indictment, Adams held a formal reelection campaign launch rally at City Hall Thursday, where he assailed the presumptive Democratic mayoral nominee, Zohran Mamdani, as unfit for office. Several of Adams' longtime supporters joined him at the event, including Sheikh Musa Drammeh, a Bronx community leader who called him the 'moral clarity mayor.' With Josephine Stratman
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - 6 lessons from Zohran Mamdani's victory
New York politics has always been outsized, sharp-elbowed, dramatic. This week, it became worthy of a Broadway production. Eric Adams, the incumbent Democratic mayor, grew so unpopular among his own base that he decided not even to bother running in the primary. His character arc took him from an avowed opponent of President Trump to pro-Trump in the face of a six-count indictment, which was dropped by the Justice Department in a remarkable coincidence. Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo jumped into the race and quickly crowded out all other contenders on the center-left with his massive fundraising. Meanwhile, Zohran Mamdani, a naturally talented, telegenic and young campaigner, energized by popular frustration with mainstream politics, consolidated the left-wing of the Democratic base. It is 'Man of LaMancha' meets 'All The Kings Men.' The shocking finale: A democratic socialist just won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City. Mamdani is now in the driver's seat. For many centrist Democrats, Mamdani, in vastly surpassing even optimistic pre-election projections, presents a shock to the system. But politicians and pundits should extrapolate national conclusions from this race at their own risk. There are complexities that transcend sound bites. Here are some lessons learned from the New York City mayoral primary. First, Mamdani's victory suggests that the center of U.S. politics is not holding, despite the fact that most Americans place themselves at or near the center of the ideological spectrum. Trump and his minions have pulled Republican orthodoxy and institutions to the extreme right, and Mamdani's victory suggests another yank by Democrats to the far left. We are in a reactionary political environment, wherein action by one side ignites energy on the other. Second, for Democrats, Mamdani's campaign solidifies a generational change, not only on the streets but in state houses and congressional delegations. Younger, more progressive activists are entering the political system. That's a good thing for Democrats in national, state and local government — if we can build constructive coalitions and avoid friendly fire. Third, extrapolating from this race may inform general trends, but it won't define the face of the Democratic Party across the country. Mamdani ran a disciplined, digitally-savvy campaign that rode a surge of enthusiasm on the left. But he won this race with only 30 percent of New York City's registered Democrats turning out to the polls. This was not a representative sample of the voters Democrats need to persuade in swing districts to flip the House in 2026. Mamdani deserves credit, but winning an election in Brooklyn, N.Y. and Brooklyn, Iowa are two different things. Fourth, Democrats do have a silver lining in this perfect storm. If they can power a common-sense policy agenda that appeals to moderate voters with the massive energy of the progressive left, they have a winning strategy. The argument that they must forsake one faction of the electorate in order to satisfy the other is a zero-sum strategy, which is not how to expand the electoral battlefield. It's not the left versus the middle — to win, it must be both. Mamdani's focus helps preview many of the issues progressives and moderates can embrace: affordability, quality of life and opposing slashing health care in order to fund tax cuts for billionaires. Fifth, even Mamdani's stunning victory reveals soft spots in his winning coalition. Mandani's win is impressive. He performed better than expected in every borough — even Cuomo's strongholds of Staten Island and Queens. But there are warning signs for any Democratic Party effort to adopt Mamdani's strategies nationwide. Despite his 'soak the rich' messaging, Mamdani was elected by higher-income and middle-income voters, whereas Cuomo won lower-income voters decisively. It is a good sign for Mamdani's political movement that he can convince wealthier voters in the city to support him, despite his redistributive policies. But the Democratic Party needs to win working-class voters if it is to win in 2026 and 2028. And, not unlike Bernie Sanders's performance in his two presidential primary campaigns, Mamdani faltered with Black voters, whom Cuomo also won convincingly. If Democrats running in the midterms don't earn Black voters' support, the party has no chance to flip the U.S. House next November. Mamdani's coalition was enough to win this primary, but it is not enough for Democrats to win nationally. Sixth, Democrats should replicate Mamdani's grassroots mobilization through digital strategies. He leveraged compelling, direct appeals on social media to become a viral sensation, with one X post arguing 'you can just tweet 'Zohran Mamdani' and immediately get 1000 likes.' This translated into a robust ground game, with his volunteers knocking on more than 1.5 million doors across New York. His dynamic campaign drew a sharp contrast to Cuomo's lethargic messaging, which from its first botched bagel order never felt in touch with voters on the ground. The mayoral primary sets up an equally bizarre November election. Cuomo still has an independent ballot line, as does Adams. Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa may have new opportunities to attract Democratic voters turned off by Mamdani's positions, most especially his repugnant views on Israel. Which means there could be even more drama ahead. This is just the intermission. Steve Israel represented New York in the House of Representatives for eight terms and was chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee from 2011 to 2015. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump Says ‘America First' Means Whatever He Wants
President Donald Trump declared that 'America First,' one of the president's favorite slogans, means whatever he says it does. The president was firing back against criticism of America's support for Israel in its conflict against Iran in a Saturday interview with The Atlantic. The interviewer, Michael Scherer, informed Trump that even former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, ordinarily a loudly pro-Trump voice, had raised concerns about his stance. Along those lines, Scherer asked about whether the move runs counter to 'America First.' 'Well, considering that I'm the one that developed 'America First' and considering that the term wasn't used until I came along, I think I'm the one that decides that,' Trump said. 'For those people who say they want peace—you can't have peace if Iran has a nuclear weapon,' he added. 'So for all of those wonderful people who don't want to do anything about Iran having a nuclear weapon—that's not peace.' Israel launched a 'preemptive strike' on Iran's nuclear capabilities Thursday. Iran answered Friday by launching ballistic missiles at Israel. The United States has helped Israel shoot the missiles down but was not involved in the country's offensive. America's support of Israel during the conflict has some in the MAGAworld worried about being sucked into a war. 'Who are the warmongers?' Carlson asked in an X post. 'They would include anyone who's calling Donald Trump today to demand air strikes and other direct US military involvement in a war with Iran.' Trump batted down the criticism—which he said he wasn't aware of—and emphasized that it is in America's national security interest to oppose Iran's nuclear development, according to The Atlantic. 'Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb, very simple,' Trump said. 'Regardless—Israel or not Israel—Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb.' The call ended when Trump excused himself to take a call from Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'Mike, I have to go,' Trump said. 'I am taking a call from Putin.' Hours later, Trump revealed on Truth Social that Putin had called to wish him a happy birthday (the president turned 79 on June 14). Trump said that the hour-long call also touched on the conflict between Israel and Iran, as well as the Ukraine-Russia war, in which Trump has sought to broker peace. 'He feels, as do I, this war in Israel-Iran should end, to which I explained, his war should also end,' the president wrote.
