New York City Mayor Eric Adams faced tough questioning during a House Oversight Committee hearing on Wednesday, as Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) pressed him on whether he had struck a deal with the Trump administration to avoid legal trouble.
“Mayor Adams, I want to be very clear. Are you selling out New Yorkers to save yourself from prosecution?” Garcia asked.
“There’s no deal. No quid pro quo. And I did nothing wrong,” Adams responded, adding that he could not comment further while his case remained under judicial review.
Adams was charged with bribery in September and pleaded not guilty. However, last month, the Justice Department ordered federal prosecutors to drop the case, prompting the resignation of a top prosecutor and several Justice Department officials. Adams has since asked a judge to dismiss the case entirely, citing prosecutorial misconduct.
Garcia accused Adams of aligning with Trump’s former acting ICE director, Tom Homan, whom he described as an advocate of harsh immigration policies.
“Mr. Mayor, it appears to me that you are selling New Yorkers out,” Garcia said. “It appears that you are working with Tom Homan, who is clearly focused on family separation and deportations and harming New Yorkers and others across the country.”
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), the committee’s ranking member, followed up with a similar question.
“I want to be really clear,” Connolly said. “Were you pressured, in exchange for the dismissal of criminal charges, to cooperate with the Trump administration on immigration? Did any such conversation take place?”
Adams reiterated his denial.
“I think I was extremely clear. No quid pro quo, no agreement. I did nothing wrong but served the people of New York City,” he said.
Adams was one of several mayors called to testify on immigration enforcement policies, along with Brandon Johnson of Chicago, Mike Johnston of Denver, and Michelle Wu of Boston.
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