Yang puts up a clanger
NYC mayoral foes seize on homeless comments
New York City voters head to the polls today amid a soaring crime rate and a firestorm over comments about the mentally ill homeless by one-time front-runner Andrew Yang.
The Democratic primary could be a bellwether for other cities like Boston, where quality of life and public safety issues like crime, open drug use, loud parties and illegal dirt bikes have dominated some neighborhood meetings.
Boston’s election is this fall and all the candidates have been forced to address quality of life issues, especially in the “Mass and Cass” neighborhood where homelessness and drug use are rampant.
Yang, the former presidential candidate and onetime front-runner in the mayoral race, created a huge controversy by saying in a debate last week that the city should do more to keep the mentally ill homeless off the streets.
“Yes, mentally ill people have rights, but you know who else have rights? We do. The people and families of the city. We have the right to walk the street and not fear for our safety because a mentally ill person is going to lash out at us,” Yang said. He advocated for forcing some mentally ill people off the streets and into treatment centers.
Some liberal critics, mayoral opponents and mental health advocates hit back at Yang, saying he was trying to criminalize mental health illness.
“All of us know someone that is dealing with a mental health issue and for him to demonize them and to feel as though they are going to further criminalize them, that is the wrong mindset,” mayoral front-runner Eric Adams said. Another candidate, civil rights attorney Maya Wiley, called Yang’s comments “deeply disturbing.”
But Yang stood by his remarks, saying he was simply trying to say that all residents should be protected from crime.
It will be interesting to see if Yang’s comments have a positive or negative effect on his campaign, which has been slipping.
Attacks by homeless people and open drug use are on the rise in New York City and crime has become the No. 1 issue on voters’ minds, according to recent polls.
A New York Post poll showed that nearly 30% of voters ranked public safety as their most important issue, almost triple the next most important issue, housing. A recent Manhattan Institute poll showed 52% of voters are worried about crime.
The Post poll of 2,942 residents also showed former NYPD captain Adams is in the lead, with 29% of the vote, followed by Yang, with 20. Adams was viewed as most trusted to handle the crime problem, according to the poll.
Yang is actually viewed as one of the more moderate candidates in the race.
The leading progressive in the race, Wiley, was in fourth place with just 13%. Another liberal, Comptroller Scott Stringer, had just 8% of the vote despite being well known.
New York City holds a ridiculous “ranked choice” primary, with voters rating all the candidates with first choice, second choice, third choice and so on. The candidate who ends up with the most ranked choice votes will face off in November against the Republican candidate.
Despite the ranked choice system, which was designed to help progressives get in the final election in November, it looks like self-styled progressives will go down to defeat in New York City.