Title: Meet the Mayoral Candidates: Michael Blake.

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Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC. We continue now to interview all the major candidates in the primaries coming this June for Mayor of New York and Governor of New Jersey. The mayoral primary is shaping up to be a fierce contest, as you probably know already, with Mayor Eric Adams seeking a second term and a growing field of challengers, mostly from the Left, now making the case for change. Joining me now is Michael Blake.

He is a former assembly member in the New York State Assembly representing the 79th District in the Bronx, former vice chair, chair of the National Democratic Party, the DNC, the Democratic National Committee, and a former aide to President Barack Obama. Since leaving office, Michael Blake has worked as a political consultant, runs a nonprofit and serves as an associate pastor as a church in the Bronx.

Thanks for coming on as a mayoral candidate. Welcome back to WNYC. Michael Blake, Rev. Michael Blake, I understand you prefer to be addressed as Reverend. So, hi. Is that central to what you do? Maybe that's a good place to start.

Rev. Michael Blake: Well, Brian, great to be back with you. We have a partnership here, so you can call me Michael here. Yes, Reverend is a new element. Last year, I was ordained. Last year, I was a lay minister going back to 1995. I took the next step to be able to serve more in the community. For these purposes, former assemblyman or Reverend is totally fine in this conversation.

Brian Lehrer: Which denomination? Just curious.

Rev. Michael Blake: I was ordained Baptist at Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church. Prior to that, I'm actually a lay minister in the United Methodist and the AME. I actually have a license in all three.

Brian Lehrer: Very interesting. Can we start substantively with the elephant in the room, the widespread suspicion that Mayor Adams engaged in a quid pro quo with the Trump Justice Department to get his corruption charges dropped for now, in exchange for letting ICE into the Rikers Island Jail and other immigration enforcement. The calls now by some for Governor Hochul to remove him from office. Adams denies making any deal.

What do you think about that, and whether the governor or the voters in this primary that you're running in should decide whether he stays in office?

Rev. Michael Blake: Well, it is my hope that come June 24th, the primary voters choose Michael Blake as their first choice to be the next mayor. As it relates to Eric Adams, let's be very clear, he's corrupt, full stop. This is a man who on November 2nd, 2023, was on a plane to fly down to DC to do a meeting at the White House to address immigration, per his own words, with the mayors of Chicago and Denver. He didn't go to that meeting, and he turned back around because his fundraiser was being raided in Brooklyn.

This is a man who was indicted because of a campaign donation scheme. It's important, Brian. Obviously, your excellent journalism is about reminding everyone he didn't just get indicted because of Turkish flight upgrades. He was indicted because they were illegally taking money from another country that led to matching funds that they should not have received here in the last election. Eric Adams should be out of office. I'm very clear.

I've been calling him Vice President Eric Adams because he has canceled on New Yorkers repeatedly, including when he canceled MLK services to go down to sit in the overflow room with Donald Trump. I do believe Governor Hochul should take the steps to remove him. This is a compromised asset of Donald Trump. This is a man who clearly is unable to lead ethically. It will lead to services and funding not coming to New Yorkers unless he answers the beck and call of Donald Trump. New York needs a mayor that is not focused on being raided, but focused on a mayor that can actually deserve respect.

Brian Lehrer: I'd like to respond to a clip of border czar Tom Homan from CNN yesterday, that is the kind of thing that Adams might use in his defense against some of the things you just said. Homan described his meeting with Mayor Adams, and specifically what they agree on regarding letting ICE into Rikers, and to see who's there based on their alleged crimes and their immigration status. Listen.

Tom Homan: I went up there as the ICE director, it's now the borders are, and we collaborated on how to move illegal alien crime, decrease it down in New York City and find the worst of the worst. That's what we talked about. It was cop to cop, not borders are to mayor, cop to cop. We talked about the public safety threats and how they should be removed from our communities. That was in conversation.

Brian Lehrer: Tom Holman with Dana Bash on CNN getting what he calls the worst of the worst. Meaning mostly, as I understand it, really violent criminals or those accused who are also not in the country illegally. Do you think the voters of New York City want to shield those people from deportation proceedings?

Rev. Michael Blake: I don't think anyone is looking to shield a significant criminal at all from proceeding. Let's be clear, we're talking about human beings, not aliens. To your previous question, it is important for us to be also clear that Tom Holman was the one on Fox & Friends with Eric Adams saying that he will be in Eric Adams butt if he does not vow to stay in line with their efforts, which quite frankly are unconstitutional in the steps they're trying to take.

ICE has no business at a school, at a church, at a community center. The thought of spending time and resources to open up a facility within Rikers for this purpose is a total waste of money. I would say when you look at the prosecutors who have made the decision to resign because they would not abide by this blatant attack that is happening on government, they stated very clearly that Adams' attorneys were repeatedly urging quid pro quo. That's not a liberal Democrat that was saying that. That was a Conservative who worked and clerked for Justice Scalia.

To the core question; every moment we're talking about Eric Adams' corruption, we're not talking about New Yorkers with cost of living and affordable housing, and schools, and reimagining what our city could be. I made the decision to run, Brian, because as the only person in this race who has White House, State House and local experience, I'm saying to the voters of New York, if you want to have a change for the better, then Michael Blake is your candidate for mayor.

Brian Lehrer: Just one more thing on public safety, because we do want to get to other issues. I want you to talk about your education plan, which I know you're running on as a core platform plank. As described by Politico, you're trying to appeal as one of your core strategies to the same outer borough Black constituency that Mayor Adams counts as his base. Maybe that's reflected by your recent ordination and the kind of congregations that you're involved with, as you described at the beginning of our conversation.

You can say if you accept that premise from Politico, but if you do, that base has arguably shown it supports Adams' more law enforcement-oriented policies more than those more police skeptical, shall we say, like from Maya Wiley, who you endorsed in 2021. How would you make your case over Adams' to voters like those?

Rev. Michael Blake: That no voter that is watching what's happening right now believes that Eric Adams is a law and order man. Simultaneously, all New Yorkers want improved public safety. If we actually had the time and resources for our police to be able to do increased street patrol with body cameras on, and them recognizing that our laws are changed so that repeat offenders are not back out on the street, and that you have mental health providers actually addressing the mental health concerns to create safety, that is what New Yorkers want to see and hear.

They are not hearing that at all because Eric Adams is spending his time only cozying up to Trump and Elon. To that degree, when you look at the dynamic of the race, I'm a brother of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. I'm a Prince Hall Mason. I'm 100 Black Men. I'm clearly a Black man myself. I'm a son of Jamaican immigrants. The dynamics of what we have and can put together is unique to anyone else in this race for those different degrees.

When you're at places such as Bethany Baptist in Brooklyn on yesterday or Mount Nebo in Harlem last week, or at Mount Mariah or Greater island in Queens, or at our church at Union Grove in the Bronx or being on North Shore of Staten island, we are able to say to Black and Brown communities, you have a clear alternative.

To all New Yorkers, when you are watching what is happening every single day where the attacks on DC are hurting us, who is the only person that can actually say, I know how a White House is supposed to work. I know how it is to serve in the State House? I am best prepared to represent you for all of our communities right now. That is why we see that as a winning path to winning this thing in June.

Brian Lehrer: Listeners, if you're just joining us, my guest is Michael Blake, former member of the New York State Assembly from the Bronx, former vice chair of the DNC. Nationally, our latest candidate guest in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary. As we're interviewing all the major candidates in both the New York mayoral and New Jersey gubernatorial race. We can take a few listener questions for Michael Blake in the context of a candidate interview. 212-433-WNYC, call or text 212-433-9692.

You're running very heavily on your plans for education in New York City. Tell our listeners about them.

Rev. Michael Blake: If we want to be focused on what the next steps can be, we have to focus on our future. To focus on our future, Brian, we have to focus on our children. Our entire vision of our campaign, which is found at blakefornyc.com is tomorrow begins today. It is our home, our city, our dreams, our future. We think about our three critical areas of addressing the true cost of living, of addressing affordable housing and improving significantly public transportation, public schools and public safety.

In order to do all of these things, education must be at the center. As the person who I went to public schools here in the Bronx and in PS 79, 118, DeWitt Clinton High School, left, went to Northwestern University before working for President Obama and coming back, this is all within my bloodline. When I was in the assembly, Brian, I led the My Brother's Keeper program. We are still the only state in the country that has a program funded and dedicated to making sure we're increasing the graduation and retention rates of Black and Latino boys and students across the state.

What can we do? First, I do believe we have to reimagine. I think having civics, financial literacy, and mental health is essential for every student before they graduate. If you do that, you create a better dynamic for every student so they can be global citizens when they graduate from here. I equally think we should go back to the days of before where any child that graduates from the New York City school can go to CUNY, be accepted into CUNY if they so choose. That for the top 35% at a minimum that are graduating, that they are able to go for free.

I think you go a step further and thinking about how do you increase retention for our teachers and making sure that we're building out a middle class, working class housing scenario of a Mitchell-Lama 2.0, so that our teachers that want to pursue the opportunity of teaching actually have better chances to make more money, put more money in their pocket. It's also why, Brian, we talk about a guaranteed income that is at living wage, not minimum wage, because if you do these things, you're allowing for more of our teachers to be a part of the process who otherwise are not.

Then a step further, we have to think about how do we have smaller classroom sizes, while also ensuring that we're increasing capacity so that more students can eat at normal hours for lunch. It doesn't make sense that a child is having lunch at 10:00 or 10:30 in the morning. They're going to be hungry later in the day. To do this, we of course not only have to fully fund our schools, but reimagine what's happening there. As part of that, that means starting earlier, that means starting early with our literacy.

We cannot continue to have a scenario where our children are not having the literacy rates that they need, they are then struggling on the back end thereafter, and that you will be able to increase the opportunities and capacity. Lastly, how do we ensure that our schools are the centers for college and career readiness so that someone has a chance to go not just to a specialized high school, but go off to college and succeed, while simultaneously recognizing that our schools cannot be places where ICE are coming in and disrupting our schools.

It impacts our attendance rates and it impacts the opportunities for our students, especially for someone like me who's a child of immigrants there. If we achieve each of these pieces, you will not only increase literacy, you will expand out what happens around a My Brother's Keeper and a My Sister's Keeper to be very focused in that regard. You'll ensure that our teachers are able to have more support in terms of increased certification and retention of them. You'll have an actual vision around college and career readiness, and you will ensure that we are creating an opportunity for our students to thrive and succeed starting from the beginning through the end. A college career program to achieve this.

This entire vision again is at blakefornyc.com under my vision and I fundamentally believe one piece that stands out in this race. What I've done around My Brother's Keeper, what I've done throughout my life around education, by being a student at the school that Jonathan Kohl's describing in children American schools, education is the center of our vision and education is what we will do when I'm elected mayor.

Brian Lehrer: We have an educated related call coming in, so let me take that for you. Here's Jasmine in Washington Heights. You're on WNYC with Michael Blake running in the Democratic mayoral primary. Hi, Jasmine.

Jasmine: Hi. My question for Rev. Blake is what his position on charter schools is. I've worked at many charter schools and I have a really low opinion of them. I think that they're really an insidious presence in New York, but I'm also really concerned about how they are expanding across the United States and what they mean for public education. I'm wondering what the Reverend's stance is on charter schools and their expansion, and the regulations that will be controlling them.

Brian Lehrer: Jasmine, thank you for your question.

Rev. Michael Blake: Excellent question, Jasmine. Thank you for what you're doing in Washington Heights. I think let's start from the baseline of the first charter school was at the SisuluSchool in Harlem, and it was established as an additional alternative option of a public school for students. I do not think that we should be raising the cap for charters at this point. I think you can focus on what the zombie schools have been and reassign those licenses for those that are actually doing it well.

There must be greater regulation and accountability where you don't have a scenario where teachers, as well as administrators are able to do things at charters that they're not able to do at traditional public schools. I do think we can learn, though, from some of the new ideas around International Baccalaureate programs. We're seeing that at the Prosper schools and other schools across the city. At this moment in time, I don't think we need to expand out and having more. I do think that they have to be regulated better so that the best practices can be implemented and that we have to ensure that there's actual fair accountability that's happening.

That you don't have scenarios that we've read before of ADA students not being supported and protected in a real manner. Equally though us recognizing that we first and foremost have to ensure that those that are at our traditional public schools are getting not just additional funding, but an additional comprehensive vision of what their college and career readiness would be. Because if you were doing that better, and we had a better collective system, something I talked about in Brooklyn with the District 16 schools last week, then you wouldn't have more people that would feel the need that they have to rely on charter schools.

Lastly, let's be clear. You have a greater preponderance of charter schools in Black and Latino neighborhoods. Unfortunately, it has become in large part because people feeling like they don't have the best option for their kids. If we address the overlying issue of making sure that our students and our schools are having the best success at our traditional public schools, we wouldn't have to have a greater reliance on charters. I do believe they have to be part of the equation. You can't separate the opportunity that a parent decides what's best for their child.

Brian Lehrer: Dominic in the Bronx, you're on WNYC with Michael Blake. Hi Dominic.

Dominic: Hi, Brian. Hi, Rev. Blake. I teach at CUNY. I'm a full-time lecturer. Every so often when I do make it to the union meetings and we discuss with potential candidates for mayor, one of my fun questions is about PILOT, Payment in Lieu of Taxes. We have two gargantuan universities housed in New York City, on Manhattan island for now, Columbia and NYU, and they don't pay city taxes. Other states, other cities like Boston has a program called Payments in Lieu of Taxes.

I want to know what your position is on that because the hundreds of millions of dollars that these two so-called not for profit organizations should be paying to the city for the privilege of conducting their business in the city.

Brian Lehrer: That's interesting, Dominic. I will add to that that a number of people have texted listening to your education proposals. Rev. Blake, how do you propose to pay for them?

Rev. Michael Blake: Absolutely. Look, when you think about to the question from Dominic, when you have essentially entities that are combined value about $4 billion of what they've done, you see that the law has saved Columbia about $182 million annually, as was previous reporting itself towards this. There should be payments being made so we can increase our revenue across the city and state for this from these institutions. It is only fair, it's only right.

Similar, when you think about it, the tax break that they're having is essentially 50% larger than that of Yankee Stadium and greater than the combined tax deals of Citi Field and Madison Square Garden. Clearly, we are losing out on revenue that we need to be achieving and receiving. How do we pay for this? First and foremost, we have it within the budget and also a reallocation of specific expenses in the city budget right now.

For example, the Strategic Resource Group, which is an entity within NYPD, which really barely needs to be utilized because that's effectively utilized during severe and significant protests. You're having funding that's being spent there that quite frankly should be used towards education. If you cap the reckless overtime that has been spent throughout the city, in particular, what we saw with the NYPD recently, if you cap that, you would not be losing out on up to a billion dollars of funds that should be going to helping our students and helping our schools.

Moreover, when you have an increase of having more individuals that are coming back into the city to increase revenue, as well as having tax breaks for businesses that are rehiring New Yorkers to come back home, as well as with the Mitchell-Lama 2.0 where you would have more people living within the city as opposed to living outside the city, those three avenues would increase revenue while still being business friendly, which would substantially increase to our coffers to pay for these programs.

New Yorkers should not have their taxes going up to pay these bills. The reallocation of what is happening right now across the government would help us to achieve that. When you think through what is happening right now, a budget shows one's priorities. There are elements within the budget right now that, quite frankly, Brian, I absolutely disagree with Eric Adams on. That we are actually not making sure that we're helping our students to thrive and to graduate. If we take those steps, not only will we help with more revenue coming in, but we'll have more revenue going to our schools.

Lastly, if we increase public safety in our communities so that small businesses are not being vandalized and people are reopening their doors, and you're increasing BIDs, business improvement districts, that equally will lead to more funding to our schools and to our budget. All a part of our vision at blakefornyc.com.

Brian Lehrer: Last question. As we run out of time, I'm going to need to limit you to a minute on this. Listener writes; so many good Progressives seeking nomination. Will they divide the vote and allow Adams to slip through? I'll add to that, yes, for people who want to vote for somebody to the left of Adams in this primary, there's you and people named Mayri, Mamdani, Stringer, Lander and Ramos, all of whom are out there campaigning as well. Why are you the best of that group and are you concerned about splitting the vote? One minute.

Rev. Michael Blake: I think first, when you look at four years ago, that Eric Adams essentially was at 30.4% in that first round and he barely won because of those that came behind him. They had more second and third, and fourth choice votes. The winner of this is going to be who has the consolidation of other candidates. What makes Michael Blake the best candidate? I am the only one who has White House, State House and local experience. I have laid out a vision around what we can do around education that is far more expensive than others in the race.

I am truly addressing the true cost of living through universal child care, through a guaranteed income, affordable housing, through making sure Mitchell-Lama 2.0 is implemented in nonprofit reimbursement, and addressing public safety, public housing and public schools at the same time. I am not worried about New Yorkers trusting in the process. New Yorkers are saying very clearly, we do not want Eric Adams, and they definitely do not want Andrew Cuomo, when you look at the data that's being laid out.

If you want a clear choice and a new vision of leadership that is ready on day one to manage, my name is Michael Blake and I'm asking for your vote. I'm asking that you see us next week on the streets for petitions starting February 25th, and that you join us at Blakefornyc.com.

Brian Lehrer: Michael Blake, former Assembly member from the Bronx, former vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, former aide to President Barack Obama, and as of last year, as he told us at the beginning of the segment, an ordained Reverend. Thank you so much for coming on and sitting for this candidate interview.

Rev. Michael Blake: Thank you, Brian. I appreciate you.

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