Gov. Kathy Hochul joined “Inside City Hall” for an exclusive interview to talk about her relationship with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, her response to Mamdani’s calls to tax the wealthiest New Yorkers, and her conversations with President Donald Trump.
When if she would reconsider her stance against a tax on the wealthiest New Yorkers if the mayor came to her with a new plan, Hochul said, “I’m very firm in this.” She said she instead prefers to “broaden the pool” and “have more money from more jobs created by more businesses coming here.”
“I want to make sure that people are still here and we don’t end up having those taxes pushed down to lower levels of income to make up for loss,” she told NY1’s Ayana Harry.
On her relationship with Mamdani, Hochul said they “may not agree on everything, or even many things sometimes, and that’s OK.”
“What I promised the people of [New York] state was that I would work on a productive relationship with the mayor of New York City — something we have not seen in a very long time in the state,” she said.
“I will continue focusing with the mayor on what we can do together,” she said.
When it came to her relationship with the president, Hochul said she “decided early on I would make the effort to have a relationship that is productive for the people I represent.” However, she added that she is “not afraid to stand up.”
The governor also mentioned that she told members of Trump’s administration that they need to get U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under control and have the agency “leave our cities.”
“Leave a presence to go after the criminals if you have to,” Hochul said. “But please leave innocent people who are law-abiding residents alone.”
Tap the video player above to watch the interview.