Former NY Dem Gov. David Paterson Calls Abbott Busing Migrants ‘Brilliant’: ‘Sometimes You Have to Tip Your Hat to Your Opponent’
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) is no fan of Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) busing migrants to his city, but former New York Gov. David Paterson (D) called it “brilliant,” even if he has political objections to it.
Appearing on WABC 770’s Cats Roundtable on Sunday, Paterson praised Abbott’s busing move as “one of the most brilliant political strategies I’ve heard in a long time.”
“I’m a Democrat. And there are a lot of things I don’t like about what he is doing. However, sometimes you have to tip your cap to your opponent,” the former governor said, according to the New York Post.
Adams, he added, has been put in a bind because he can’t turn away the migrants being brought into New York City.
“That would be going against what has been the policy most Democrats have on immigration in the first place,” he said.
Though the Democrat said Abbott’s strategy has “paid him dividends politically,” he also said he doesn’t believe Adams is being hurt politically in the process.
“I don’t think Adams is being hurt in this process at all, but I think nationally, it’s an amazing way to focus people on the whole immigration process,” he said.
Adams has said New York City requires assistance from the federal government to deal with the influx of migrants and accused Abbott of using people as “political pawns,” while Abbott has accused the federal government of not doing nearly enough to properly deal with the massive flow of migrants coming across the southern border.
.@GregAbbott_TX used innocent people as political pawns to manufacture a crisis. New Yorkers are stepping up to fix it — that’s our city’s values.
But we need the federal government’s help — money, technical assistance and more. pic.twitter.com/cOdXrULpcC
— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) August 7, 2022
Adams and Abbott have taken to exchanging verbal barbs over the busing issue. Adams recently threatened to bus New Yorkers to Texas to campaign against the Republican.
Abbott responded by quoting Dirty Harry.
“I kind of feel like Clint Eastwood,” the governor told Fox News last week. “Go ahead, Mayor, make my day.”
