President Donald Trump’s proposed budget will have a “huge negative impact on his hometown,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday.
Just hours after Trump unveiled his proposed federal budget, which includes drastic funding decreases to the State Department, the Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies, de Blasio denounced the cuts and urged the president to reconsider his priorities.
“New York City is directly in the crosshairs of this proposal,” the mayor said during the afternoon news conference at City Hall. “We intend to fight many, many items in Trump’s proposal.”
Trump’s proposed budget includes a $2.6 billion or 31% cut to the EPA’s budget. It also features a 28% reduction ($10.9 billion) to the State Department, while adding $54 billion for military spending.
The mayor said the proposed budget includes “so many negative elements” that more and more people will become disillusioned with the president and his promises, even those who voted for him.
“[The cuts] will hurt all 50 states,” de Blasio said, adding he believes there are items in the budget that even Republicans will have a hard time voting for. “This budget hurts across the board.”
Specific to New York City, Trump’s proposal would result in a $190 million loss to counterterrorism efforts, a $100 million cut to the city’s public schools, a $150 million drop in funding for New York City Housing Authority and it could impact the progress of infrastructure projects such as the Second Avenue Subway extension, according to the mayor.
Police Commissioner James O’Neill said the federal counterterrorism money would be used to provide officers with tools and resources for extreme emergencies such as bomb threats.
“The federal government has long known that if they cut this funding they make us increasingly less safe,” he said.
Some 700,000 families stand to lose access to the Home Energy Assistance Program, while the city’s Housing Preservation and Development would take a $136 million loss, about 86% of the agency’s budget, the mayor said.
“It’s extraordinary how many things can be impacted by one budget,” de Blasio said, adding that Trump’s budget choices show that he does not value working families.
Speaking directly to Trump, de Blasio urged the president to come back to his hometown and talk to the people who will be impacted.
“President Trump should remember where he comes from,” de Blasio said. “Maybe if he remembers, it will help him to realize that he needs to take a different path.”
With Ivan Pereira and Reuters
