Adrienne Adams, N.Y.C. Council Speaker, Attacks Trump Ahead of Potential Mayoral Bid

The annual State of the City address by the speaker of the New York City Council, Adrienne Adams, would typically be seen as a blueprint for the Council’s agenda in the coming year.

But her speech on Tuesday carried far more weight.

Ms. Adams formed a campaign committee to run for mayor last week, in preparation for a potential late bid, with the Democratic primary looming in June.

She is expected to make a final decision this week, but signs seems to be pointing to her jumping in the race. She is assembling a campaign team and participated this weekend in a screening for the endorsement of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, an influential city union.

Even if she doesn’t run, her vision for New York City also carried added importance given the diminished influence of Mayor Eric Adams; under Ms. Adams’s leadership, the Council has overridden the mayor’s vetoes on critical criminal justice measures.

Should she choose to run, Ms. Adams faces an uphill battle. She’ll have a compressed period to raise money and boost her low name recognition. None of the four previous Council speakers who have run for mayor have been successful, and no woman has ever served as mayor. And the entrance into the race over the weekend of former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who polls show is the front-runner, has shifted the center of gravity in the contest.

Ms. Adams mentioned none of that in her speech at Jazz at Lincoln Center, where she instead focused on accomplishments such as plans to boost the production of affordable housing, extend discounts for those struggling to pay bus and subway fares and protect immigrant and L.G.B.T.Q. people from the policies of the Trump administration.

Ms. Adams criticized President Trump throughout her speech, saying he was on a “cruel crusade against immigrant families,” was “willing to burn everything in his way” for power and that his policies were damaging small businesses.

Mr. Adams, who is not related to the Council speaker, has been criticized for not speaking more forcefully against Trump administration policies that are likely to harm the city. The mayor has been accused of being beholden to Mr. Trump after the Justice Department moved to dismiss a five-count federal corruption indictment against him.

The federal prosecutor handling the case resigned rather than dismiss the charges. She said there was a quid pro quo, in which the mayor would participate in Trump administration immigration enforcement in exchange for a dismissal of the charges.

“It is up to us to counter the tyranny taking root at our federal level, and right here in our own backyard,” Ms. Adams said to applause.

Mr. Adams was not in attendance. He had instead traveled to Washington, D.C., where he was expected to testify before Congress on Wednesday about New York’s status as a sanctuary city.

Ms. Adams said in her speech that her agenda reflected her style of collaborative and community-facing leadership, a model that could be “scaled for greater impact” by those who controlled the levers of power.

“Throughout my time in office, I’ve been labeled a ‘moderate’ in people’s attempt to make sense of who I am. But my focus has always been public service, which has no political label,” Ms. Adams said. “How we gauge policy solutions should be based on their effectiveness in improving the lives of New Yorkers.”

Among those in the audience was Brad Lander, the city comptroller and one of the Democrats running in the June primary, and Jumaane Williams, the public advocate.

“It sounds like she knows how to run a city,” Mr. Williams said after the speech.

Mr. Lander said Ms. Adams had delivered a strong speech about how to “protect New Yorkers” from Donald Trump and the threats to housing affordability, child care and public safety.

“That’s the conversation New Yorkers want,” Mr. Lander said. “New Yorkers don’t want corrupt chaos agent Andrew Cuomo replacing corrupt chaos agent Eric Adams.”

Among the new proposals Ms. Adams introduced was a plan to fund vouchers for families with children 2 years old or younger that would allow those making slightly more than the limit to be eligible for assistance. She also proposed a plan to help adults and young people obtain degrees at the City University of New York by providing up to $1,000 to clear unpaid balances so students could re-enroll in classes.

To increase the growth of minority- and women-owned business, Ms. Adams proposed a “minority business accelerator” that would help firms gain contracts from the private industry. Jonathan Bowles, executive director of the Center for an Urban Future, which proposed the idea a few years ago, said the proposal would “build wealth in communities of color and strengthen the city’s economy for everyone.”

Ms. Adams also proposed legislation that would speed payment to nonprofits that provided residents with vital city services. To help with the city’s mental health crisis, Ms. Adams proposed creating a “holistic” model to make community centers places that offer mental health services, as well as physical and recreational opportunities.

She also announced a plan to expand library access by restoring seven-day-per-week service at 10 branches across the city. Ms. Adams led a charge to reverse the mayor’s proposal to cut $58.3 million in library funding last year.

“We need solutions more than slogans, service rather than saviors and partnership over patriarchy,” Ms. Adams said as she ended her speech, sounding very much like a candidate for mayor. “The dignity and trust in government leadership has been shaken in our city and it must be restored.”