Stop Eric Adams' Power Grab

Are you a voter in New York City or know someone who is? We need your voice! Indicted Mayor Eric Adams—who, like Trump, also loves foreign bribes—pushed through ballot measures two through six that centralize more power in the mayor’s office. This consolidation risk comes at a time when we must remain vigilant against rising autocracy, especially given New York's rich history as a sanctuary for resistance, from the abolitionist movement to standing up to Trump. Be sure to vote YES on ballot measure one, which enshrines reproductice healthcare, LGBTQ rights, and more in our state constitution, and vote NO on ballot measures two to six.

To help us navigate Adams' gaslighting and strategize ways to overcome America's oligarchy crisis is Jasmine Gripper, co-state director of the New York Working Families Party. Before you head to the polls, don’t miss this important interview! Be sure to vote along the Working Families Party line, especially since disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo raised the threshold for third parties to appear on the ballot.

Interested in joining or starting a Working Families Party chapter in your state? Visit their website at workingfamilies.org for more information.

Look out for a new Gaslit Nation out tonight featuring the chilling insights of Dr. Bandy Lee on Trump contagion and how it spreads the cult of violence that turned Germany into a dictatorship in just six months. 

Want to enjoy Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, ad-free episodes, exclusive Q&A sessions, invites to live events, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!

Download Transcript

Andrea Chalupa (00:06):

Welcome to Gaslit Nation's New York City Boat. Super special. We've had a lot of drama in New York City, more than usual. So I've asked the superstars at the New York Working Families Party to walk us through our ballot, especially since it includes some gaslighting by our indicted mayor, Eric Adams, who's mobbed up on illegal foreign bribes. So for that, welcome to the show, Jasmine Gripper, the state co-Director of Working Families Party. For those who are just meeting this real life Wonder Woman, Jasmine was named one of City and State's 40 under 40 Rising Stars and regularly features on the Education Power 100 list. She directed campaigns that delivered record funding for New York's public education system and historic childcare funding. Born and bred in Queens where my dad grew up. She's a proud graduate of New York City's public school system and Cooney's Hunter College. Alright, welcome Jasmine.

Jasmine Gripper (01:04):

Thanks for having me.

Andrea Chalupa (01:05):

What is the Working Families Party and how can people get involved?

Jasmine Gripper (01:10):

The Working Families Party was created about 26 years ago in order to build power for working people across New York State. And we knew we needed to have a political apparatus in order to do that. And the Working Families Party had been building power by winning big wins to improve people's lives. So we fought and then raised the minimum wage here in New York. We fought for paid family days and won paid sick days and we won. And so New York Working Families Party has been here fighting for workers and building power for everyday New Yorkers and not the ultra rich people have a chance to vote on the Working Families ballot line this November. One of the great things about New York is that we have fusion voting so candidates can appear on more than one line. And so when you go to Vote and cast your ballot, you can vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Waltz on the Democratic line, but you can also vote for them on the Working Families ballot line.

(02:05):

And the reason why we encourage people to vote on the Working Families Line is that it helps us build our power. It shows elected officials that you stand with the values of the party, which is fighting for everyday New Yorkers that who are committed to changing our state and our cities in order to really reflect what families need and family needs childcare, we need affordable housing, we need the things that working families are constantly having to fight for, but too often our politicians are controlled by the whims of the ultra rich in our society. And so the Working Families Party is here fighting for you everyday New Yorkers. And we actually would join us by helping us to build power by voting on the Working Families Party line this cycle for Kamala Harris and go all the way down the line to all the candidates who are listed there.

Andrea Chalupa (02:55):

What about the six ballot measures on the ballot this year? And is that just for New York City or is it for New York State?

Jasmine Gripper (03:02):

So New Yorkers need to remember to flip over your ballot this year. Prop one is statewide and we're encouraging everyone to vote yes for Prop one. Prop One will change or update our New York State Constitution to enshrine the rights we have for women in our reproductive health. It enshrines those protections for L-G-B-T-Q New Yorkers. There's a lot of misinformation about Prop One happening. Now. To be clear, prop one takes our existing rights that we all already have and it puts it in our state constitution. This way it can't be changed by who's in the office. So we're asking everyone to vote yes on Prop one. Now, props two to six are unique to New York City. This was an effort by New York City's Mayor Adams, who really rushed through the process of putting props on the ballot. And he's been in a power struggle or a power war with the New York City Council.

(03:53):

The city council has been standing up to this mayor in as big of a way as possible and challenging his power. So they pass a bill, he's vetoed the bill and the city council overrid his Beto and the mayor does not like this balance and that he has to contend with the city council. The additional props two to six on the ballot were created by the mayor to expand the power of the executive office. What we are saying is that the New City Charter already gives outsized power to the executive branch. The mayor already has a good size amount of power in our city budget process and in our city planning process, we do not want this mayor or any other mayor to have more power. We believe in checks and balances. It's what makes our democracy healthy. And so we're asking everyone to reject Mayor Adams Power Graph and they'll know on props two to six.

(04:44):

I'll be honest, if you read some of them, you're like, oh, this doesn't sound so bad. The reality is the ones that don't sound bad, like we should do something about the garbage, are the weakest ones that hold no teeth and there'll be no enforcement behind. And the ones that are dangerous are really dangerous and really expand the power of the mayor and will limit the council's ability even to when they override the mayor's veto to implement the city law. And so we're saying just reject the mayor's power grab altogether. Just say no to two to six. So yes for prop one and vote no on props two to six in New York City.

Andrea Chalupa (05:20):

Eric Adams is shameless. Not only does he talk in the third person, but he shoves these ballot measures on there and a massive Trumpian power grab proving again, not just with that foreign money in his pocket, that he is the black Trump and he needs to go. Alright, so final question. We have listeners all across America, including fighting for their lives in Republican hostage states like Indiana, Missouri and so on. What advice do you have for folks there who want to join your movement to start a Working Families party where they live or how can they sign up your larger national effort?

Jasmine Gripper (05:55):

The Working Families Party was started in New York. We are the longest part of the party. We actually have a ballot line in New York that makes us strong, but fusion voting does not exist. As third parties became more and more powerful, we saw states really limit the ability for third parties to grow their power use infusion voting. We have it in about three states, but the Working Families Party is growing nationally. We are trying to be a national party and we are working through the growing pains of that effort. And so look up to see if there's a Working Families party in your state. We're in over a dozen states already. We've been building power. One of the cool things the party recently did was in the Philadelphia City Council, they hold two seats for the Minority Party. And those two seats always went to Republicans.

(06:45):

The working families ran two WFP candidates for those seats, kicked the Republicans off the city council. And now the WFP is a minority party in the Philadelphia City Council. So the way the party looks in different states varies. Sometimes we're just running electoral efforts, we're endorsing candidates, we're growing our base, and we're growing our power. So check out the Working Families Party across the nation. Look us up online, follow us on social media. We are building big power. We're trying to move the center of gravity and win power for working class New Yorkers. And when we say we're trying to win power and build our power, we don't just want to seat at the table. We want our people, our memberships, our affiliates to be the decision makers at the helm of the table. We want our folks running government and we want to build governing power for and by working class multiracial people. And we can do that by working together. So look up the Working Families Party wherever you are, plug in and get involved. And the least you can do is just follow some social media working families on all of the platforms. From TikTok to Twitter.

Andrea Chalupa (07:50):

I want my listeners in New York State to join me in voting down the Working Families Party line. You can still vote for Kamala, but just give that vote to Working Families Party to amplify their important voice. We are living in a time of historic income inequality that has surpassed the Gilded Age. And when you have economic instability of this level, that is how fascism flourishes. That is where we are. So if you want to push back against the oligarchy, if you want to protect and fight for what's left of our democracy and strengthen it, we need to fight for greater social progress. And we're going to do it through grassroots engines like Working Families Party. And I'm so grateful to you all. I'm sending you the best energy in the world. We are the wind in your sails, and we hope you have a hugely successful election and you're always welcome back here at Gas Nation because we need you. And I hope that my listeners, wherever you live, look them up and see how you can get in.

Jasmine Gripper (08:53):

We're at a pivotal moment for the party. Part of maintaining our ballot status is our ability to secure votes this year. So the Working Families Party has to secure. We're aiming to get 250,000 votes for Kamala Harris and Tim Waltz on the Working Families ballot line. The previous governor of New York State changed the threshold for third parties and he raised it. So instead of requalifying every four years, we now have to requalify every two years. It's 130,000 votes or 2%, whichever is higher. So we're aiming to get 250,000 votes for Kamala Harris and Tim Wal on the Working Families Party line to maintain our status as a political party in New York State and continue to grow our power. And we hope you'll join us.