Congestion pricing bills hit… widespread resistance

0:00 Speaker 1 Sunday morning, the Borough President of the Great Island of Staten Island, Veto for Sella. So many things are happening. Veto, you spoke out against congestion pricing. You sued on congestion pricing. New Jersey sued on congestion pricing. It seems like it falls on deaf ears and they find judges that will beat you down. Give us an update, Kathy. Governor huckle

0:29 came out with new budgets. All the governors from wall Estates, the Blue States, California, Illinois, Arizona are going against President Trump. World leaders are falling in line. Where do you want to begin.

0:47 Speaker 2 Let’s begin with the fact that I think the American people spoke loudly and wisely on election day to say we’re going to kick the country back, We’re going to get our borders back, We’re going to get common sense back.

0:58 And if you’ve noticed you on this frase that you use regularly common sense. One of the things that the President said, this is going to be the administration of common sense, and that seems to be lacking in places like New York these days, with programs like congestion pricing.

1:13 It’s not common sense to punish hardworking people just to get to work. It’s not common sense to say that while you’re uh eight hundred million dollars or so as being a fair invasion, you’re going to go bang people who have to drive their cars to work or a loved one to a hospital just because he can manage

1:34 their money properly. And the congestion price lawsuit we filed with the UFT and so many others last year was because we had to stand up in a common face for hardworking bash payers recognize the coggestion pricing nothing but a cash doggle, and we’re hopeful that the new administration perhaps still was still successful. We will that’s our plan,

2:02 and we’re going to try our best to achieve that.

2:05 Speaker 1 I understand from my friend Paul Zuber that the budget might be as short as twenty five binion.

2:15 Speaker 3 In the future.

2:16 Speaker 1 I mean, how do they raise the budget ten percent. I don’t understand that and have such a shortfall.

2:26 Speaker 2 It goes back to bad government one oh one. They just do and make promises that they can’t keep, commit the programs that they can’t afford, spend money that they do not have, and then when they realize that what do they do. How are we going to get more money out of people? How we’re going to raise taxes

2:45 even more? How are we going to get more funds? And that’s how you get voila congestion pricing because they mismanage their money for so long that it’s emblematic. And that’s why people, I think, are waking up more and more to say enough is enough, folks. We work too hard.

3:02 We want to keep a little bit more of our own money. We want to grow the economy and put more people back to work. But when people in government just see this as people as piggybanks, that’s how you end up with the short fall falls and paid more importantly, people just being misled.

3:21 Speaker 1 Randy Mastrow hasn’t returned calls because he really expected to win the New Jersey lawsuit.

3:27 Speaker 3 What went wrong? Then? Well?

3:31 Speaker 2 What what? What’s gone wrong? From from day one is the deck was pretty much stacked against us when you had administrations here and in d C to try to steamroll and fast track, and justin pricing, I give Randy, you know, there’s credit for trying to stop this train, no pun intended h And we’re doing what we can.

3:55 It’s not dead yet. Uh. And again, whether it’s in the courts or a political question for the new administration, we owe it to the people to try our best to stop it. And if it does remain in effect and doesn’t go away, at least we can look ourselves in the mirror and say we did the best we could. Unfortunately,

4:16 there’re gonna be a lot of people who were hurt financially. But with all that said, we’re doing the best we can.

4:23 Speaker 1 You’ve been in city government, you’ve been in state government, you’ve been in federal government. Why are these governors California, Arizona, Why are they doing what they’re doing. At the end of the day, the president of the United States is a very powerful position to you know’s how.

4:43 Speaker 3 Do you say it’s seven away? I mean in the Atlantic.

4:46 Speaker 2 City, I would I don’t know what’s going on politically with people, Brandon than just step forward and say, hey, the American people have spoken, it’s in our interest. When you’re in California, in New York, you know, you pick a state, it’s in our interest to work with the president to do what’s best for the people of our state.

5:08 That’s the way results happen, That’s the way people get what they deserve. If your immediate reaction is we’re going to fight the new administration every chance we get, what business can run like that? Can you imagine, John, If you walk into your office and everybody in the office hates each other and they say, we’re going to attack

5:26 that guy and we’re not going to work with that guy, you’d go out of business. But a guy like you, who’s brilliant and successful knows you have to bring people together for a common cause and a common good. And that’s what works for you and so many successful businesses.

5:40 But it doesn’t work when the political leaders say we will fight President Trump every step of the way. That’s the recipe for loss and disaster, not for success.

5:54 Speaker 3 Where do you want to go from here? What do you want to talk about?

5:56 Speaker 1 Sunday morning, A lot of people are sitting here, they’re drinking their their coffee, and a lot of them have optimism that the world is going in the right direction. Finally because the President Trump, even the Europeans have you know, respect and positive threats that President Trump is a real leader.

6:20 Speaker 3 What do we talk what do we want to talk about?

6:22 Speaker 2 Well, to those folks who drinking coffee, I drink still out of your mayoral cup from twenty thirteen. John, That’s how I enjoy my coffee in the morning. I’m with those people who are optimistic. I feel good about twenty twenty five with the election of President Trump because he recognizes that the true genius of this country is the

6:44 American people themselves. They’re the ones who want to create and innovate and grow, and they want peace and prosperity here, and they want law and order. They want to raise their families in just in safe neighborhood, safe rules. And they don’t want endless boondoggles overseas and not to let’s call them endless wars. And they want their border secure

7:09 because what they’re saying is this is our home. We don’t want to be invaded in our home. You want to talk about law and order, fine, you want to talk about legal immigration, fine, we can have that conversation.

7:20 So what President Trump is doing is he’s following through on so many of the promises he made. It’s upsetting some on the left, unfortunately, but that’s not what the American people want. What they’re seeing in the last just week the loan exactly what they were missing for the last four years.

7:39 Speaker 1 Vito Facella Borough, President of Staten Island. Let’s pray for We prayed for America and God listened. We prayed for the free world, and God listen. Let’s pray for our inner cities and our states.

7:53 Speaker 2 Let’s keep praying. John, We’re going to get it back. We don’t give up.

7:56 Speaker 3 Thank you so much.