{"id":358631,"date":"2026-09-28T10:08:07","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T10:08:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/358631\/"},"modified":"2026-09-28T10:08:07","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T10:08:07","slug":"curtis-sliwa-on-eric-adams-on-the-train","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/358631\/","title":{"rendered":"Curtis Sliwa, on Eric Adams, on the train"},"content":{"rendered":"

Eric Adams is one of New York\u2019s 20 most influential politicians of the past 20 years. See the full list. <\/a><\/p>\n

Eric Adams learned the ways of New York City as a young cop, riding the subways late at night on patrol. Curtis Sliwa was there too, in his own uniform.<\/p>\n

Several decades later, after running for mayor against each other \u2013 twice \u2013 the Guardian Angel is still riding the rails every night. \u201cI LIVE on the subways,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s why a lot of the Gen Zers call me the night mayor. Because I\u2019m nocturnal.\u201d<\/p>\n

So City & State joined Sliwa on the No. 2 train to the No. 4 train, past 10 p.m., to reminisce about Adams. Sliwa insisted we ride to Brownsville, Brooklyn \u2013 where the mayor clobbered Sliwa in 2021. \u201cThis was his stomping grounds,\u201d Sliwa said. \u201cYeah, he was godly.\u201d<\/p>\n

And while Sliwa patrolled car to car, greeted like a celebrity with selfie requests, we talked about their parallel lives, why he loved Adams\u2019 bedroom search video and the worst thing he ever did. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n

Do you remember the first time that you heard the name Eric Adams?<\/p>\n

Yeah, I ran into him! He was a supporter of the Guardian Angels. He wrote an op-ed piece in the Daily News. He said, \u201cWhen I first would shape up, the desk sergeant in the transit police precinct would tell us new rookies: \u2018Do you see these guys in the red berets? Get them out of the system. Harass them. Arrest them. Whatever you got to do, they\u2019re a nuisance.\u2019\u201d And he wrote in the piece, \u201cNah.\u201d Me and the new recruits \u2013 that was when the academy was over on like 20th, 21st (Street) \u2013 he said we weren\u2019t going to do that. And it was true. I\u2019d run into him from time to time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Then when he was borough president, I\u2019d run into him often because I was with (former Queens Borough President) Melinda Katz at that time. All five of the borough presidents would have meetings. I\u2019d have conversations with him. Very affable, but also very guarded. There were two Eric Adamses.<\/p>\n

Adams came up riding the trains. Did that prepare him to be a politician?<\/p>\n

I think so. But I think, remember at that time he was riding the wave, he was associating with (the Rev. Al) Sharpton. He was hanging out on Atlantic Avenue with Rev. (Herbert Daughtry). So he was getting mentored by a lot of people. And he was definitely very political, the union, 100 (Blacks) in Law Enforcement that he eventually became the head of. But everything had a racial component to it. So he could have a normal conversation, especially if you\u2019re a street guy like me. But he always had an agenda. And I think he believed that he was the smartest person in the room, and that his complexion was his protection. Because he was an African American guy, especially white people would not want to go after him and be called racist. Yeah, he called everybody racist. Yeah, he called (New York City Police Department Commissioner Ray) Kelly racist. Everybody was a racist. And he knew that would insulate him. But he also knew somebody like me would say, \u201cYeah, go ahead.\u201d Now, what\u2019s your best shot after that? So if you\u2019re a street guy, he knew that those boundaries didn\u2019t exist. But the people from the suites, he knew he could intimidate them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Do you see you and Adams as having parallel lives? Coming up in Brooklyn, wearing a uniform, getting in the tabloids, running for mayor \u2026<\/p>\n

I would say the thing we had in common \u2013 and he couldn\u2019t ignore it \u2013 was my knowledge of the streets. And how I could go into a place like Brownsville and be accepted, even though I\u2019m white. Just like him. Obviously, it was natural for him, because that was his base. But I think he didn\u2019t like the fact that I knew so much, and I would disparage him.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Have you ever sat down with the mayor since the \u201921 campaign? Have you guys ever had a moment?<\/p>\n

No. Just in the street, subway, early on. Not so much. The one thing I\u2019ll never forget, in the Fifth Avenue Festival, they do the night stroll. So he\u2019s meeting with (City Council Member) Justin Brannan there, the Democrats, and I\u2019m walking up, you know, meeting and greeting people. He cuts in front of me, and I reach my hand out, and he walks right by, and he eye fornicates me and mad dogs me, because it\u2019s already the campaign. And I say, \u201cOh, it\u2019s going to be like that.\u201d You know, to myself. All right.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Then there was one other occasion. It was a bodega where a worker got killed in a dispute in the morning. I was already there with the Guardian Angels because we patrol that area. And he shows up. Fine. He walks right past me. Doesn\u2019t even acknowledge me. I say, \u201cOh, I\u2019m a person of no consequence, right? I\u2019ve known you for what, 40 years?\u201d But he was into that, \u201cI\u2019m going to crush everybody in front of me, and you was standing in my way.\u201d<\/p>\n

What do you think Adams\u2019 legacy is going to be? What will he be remembered for?<\/p>\n

The most crooked mayor in the history of New York City. And that\u2019s saying a lot. We’ve had a lot of crooked mayors. So we had obviously the one that most people know, the Irishman who had to get on an ocean liner (Jimmy Walker). (Franklin D.) Roosevelt said, \u201cYou got to go on an ocean liner because I\u2019m running for president. It\u2019s going to hang over my head.\u201d Then you had (William) O\u2019Dwyer. \u201cOh, you got to be the ambassador to Mexico. (Harry) Truman told me we need an ambassador.\u201d They gave him from a ticker tape parade to Fifth Avenue. You\u2019re not being mayor!<\/p>\n

What do you think Eric should be doing in his semi-retirement? Should he go on the radio with you?<\/p>\n

No, he can\u2019t handle. He tried that. He can\u2019t handle. It\u2019s like Cuomo. He tried it. Didn\u2019t work for him. I think he needs to rehabilitate himself. What he\u2019s doing now is not rehabilitating himself. Because he could be a role model for younger African Americans who have had problems because they\u2019re dyslexic, because he understands what it\u2019s like behind bars in Rikers Island, and for other places like that. He could become a spokesperson. But he\u2019s got to be clean. He\u2019s got to disassociate from all of his contacts. And that\u2019s going to be very difficult for him. Because he views them all as friends. I mean, look at them all. I mean, I don\u2019t have enough fingers and toes for all of his cronies who should have been indicted, should have been in jail. I mean, (Manhattan District Attorney) Alvin Bragg can reindict him on the charges that Donald Trump saved him from.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nOn patrol, Sliwa does a lot of talking with fans. \/ Jeff Coltin<\/p>\n

What did Adams do right? Where did he have a positive impact on the city?<\/p>\n

Most important \u2013 and I brought it up in the debate, when they said, \u201cWhat\u2019s the most positive thing?\u201d Even though he always made fun of me and the animals \u2013 \u201cOh, good what you and your wife Nancy do.\u201d But I said, you know, he had a come to Jesus moment. He was leading a life in which he was eating all the wrong foods, was losing his eyesight, was all bloated up, was having difficulty getting out of bed. And then it hit him. \u201cMan, I\u2019ve got to change my lifestyle with the food I eat.\u201d He started commenting on the lack of having fruits and vegetables in the stores, which Zohran (Mamdani) is following up now with the city-owned supermarkets, which I think is a good idea. Everybody goes \u2013 no, if you\u2019ve been in these neighborhoods like Hunts Point, try to find any fruits or vegetables in those areas. They don\u2019t have service.<\/p>\n

You know that\u2019s the other thing that you do for young people. He was trying to do it in Gracie Mansion. You know, like Chef (Gordon) Ramsay, Chef Adams would show like a $4 bag of beans. You can do this with vegetables. You don\u2019t have to eat meat. You can have a healthy lifestyle, working out. Relating his personal experience from realizing he may have been at the point with his diabetes, at that point, maybe they\u2019re hacking off a limb. He realized he was no longer able to function. And he did a complete turnaround and spoke about it, wrote the book.<\/p>\n

Talking about dyslexia. Not having fathers, positive role models. And even though they made fun of him when he was the state senator, telling the parents, \u201cYou got to go into the kid\u2019s room, man. You got to be like Sgt. Joe Friday because the kid is going to get over on you.\u201d But he was right. He was right.<\/p>\n

So, food, mentoring, the dyslexia \u2013 extraordinarily important. Because, you know, I\u2019ve been locked up. So I know guys can\u2019t read, they can\u2019t write, they can\u2019t even speak. So he brought that to the forefront, and that\u2019s why I said he can do those things now. He has the credibility in those areas. He\u2019s tainted in all these other areas.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And what killed him? Right out of the box. When he said, \u201cI got a lot of swagger. I\u2019m the swagger man.\u201d And then they did that bit on \u201cSaturday Night Live.\u201d The Black actor at that time. I\u2019m the swagger man. And that\u2019s when I coined it, the swagger man with no plan. He\u2019ll be out to the break of dawn at every club. So first it was Zero Bond, very exclusive. Then downtown with (Frank) Carone at Cipriani\u2019s.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re calling Adams one of the 20 most influential politicians of the past 20 years. Do you agree?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yeah, absolutely. Without a doubt. Yeah. Against all odds, he rose through the ranks. He had a lot of setbacks along the way, and any moment could have been indicted. Still trying to figure that out.<\/p>\n

When he went over to (former state Sen.) Shirley (Huntley)\u2019s house, and she had her lantern wired up like a Christmas tree, and she was asking the questions of all of them who came over. And he escaped that. He escaped that nonprofit he set up as Brooklyn borough president, the gambling scam, you know, where (Andrew) Cuomo had to come to the rescue and bring the Malaysians in for the racino, and he came real close. But I think every time he escaped, it emboldened him more. And this time, didn\u2019t he understand? When you\u2019re mayor, you\u2019re under the electron microscope. But I think he thought he was bulletproof. Let\u2019s face it, he was on the precipice.<\/p>\n

And then look, he had (former state Sen.) Malcolm Smith riding in his SUV. Convicted felon! He gets a second opportunity to run for mayor when Cuomo just fails in the primary. That arrogant SOB thought he was going to have a coronation, and the Zohranistas kicked his ass.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re not making the case he\u2019s influential, though. This sounds like Eric Adams is a schmuck.<\/p>\n

Well what did he do? He had the press conference on City Hall, the comeback. Who did he have there? Brianna (Suggs), the bookkeeper who had her house raided in Crown Heights. Winnie Greco! Ingrid Lewis-Martin! But he thought he was impervious, that he was bulletproof. I mean, the brazenness. Come on, man, you were given a second opportunity and you blew it.<\/p>\n

You said Adams was \u201cgodly\u201d in Brownsville, when you campaigned here.<\/p>\n

Eric worked it hard. So when I was campaigning here in 2021, \u201cYo, we respect you, Curtis, but you know, Eric\u2019s one of ours.\u201d Eric was always here.<\/p>\n

I worked this area hard in 2021. Got a lot of respect, a lot of props. Probably the only white guy that ever happened for. But I couldn\u2019t put a chink in his political armor here. Couldn\u2019t put a chink. And he had some other pockets like that, which is what he always relied on. I mean, I\u2019m from Canarsie. He killed me in Canarsie. Everybody knows me in Canarsie.<\/p>\n

Well that\u2019s because you\u2019re a registered Republican!<\/p>\n

That hurt. But also, he had developed the contacts. Remember, state senator, borough president. So he was there. He was in the streets. He\u2019d go to the restaurants. He\u2019d go to the clubs. He was well known. Like right now, if I was to ask a person here, who\u2019s the Brooklyn borough president? Back then, who\u2019s your Brooklyn borough president? \u201cOh, Eric Adams. Eric Adams, oh man, he was here on Pitkin Avenue. He was here on Belmont (Avenue).\u201d You know, he would show up at these events because, let\u2019s face it, as borough president, all you do is cut ribbons. But that was the best job for him. If he could have stayed Brooklyn borough president for life, you know, giving certificates out, commendations, cutting ribbons. Probably the worst thing he ever did is when he came up with his solution for rats, invited all of you guys to Brooklyn Borough Hall and drowned them, and then ladled them out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Eric Adams is one of New York\u2019s 20 most influential politicians of the past 20 years. See the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":358632,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[154,81,8408,141,9,24,28687,63,103,122,124,123,615],"class_list":["post-358631","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-curtis-sliwa","tag-eric-adams","tag-guardian-angels","tag-mta","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-city-subway","tag-nyc","tag-nypd","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-subway"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=358631"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358631\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/358632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=358631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=358631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=358631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}