President Trump not only killed congestion pricing on Wednesday, as first reported by the Post, but he and the White House also pronounced him "king."
The president first anointed himself as monarch on Truth Social...
... before the White House put out an image of Trump as a king on its official Instagram page:
The main news was covered by every outlet (including the Times, NYDN, Axios, Hell Gate, NY Mag, The City, The Hill, amNY), plus there were some worthy sidebars:
- The Post, naturally, played up the King Donald angle, as well as the MTA legal battle. (The Times and Gothamist also played up the "Long live the king" thing.) And the British paper, the Guardian, took a dim view of Trump's monarchial obsession.
- The Post also had the inevitable pro-driver sidebar, which we countered with a pro-transit sidebar. Meanwhile, amNY played the reaction story straight.
- The Times printed the MTA's full lawsuit to save congestion pricing (including a footnote that mentioned li'l ol' me!).
- And David Wallace-Wells called Trump's decision "a gut punch" in the Times (and even quoted li'l ol' me!).
- Like Streetsblog, Gothamist pursued the question: Can Trump do this?
- Like us, amNY was inspired by Gov. Hochul's full-throated critique of Trump's decision.
- Komanoff mourned the loss in the Washington Spectator and raised a larger point: Trump is not just going after congestion pricing, he's going after New York and all U.S. cities by extension — to say nothing of the prerogative and genius of citizens and their legislators to re-organize society for the common good.
- QNS had the view from Queens.
- Gizmodo had a great headline, "President Trump, NYC’s Biggest Hater, Says He Is Nixing Congestion Pricing."
Of course, social media is where the best takes played out, of course.
We especially liked this video from the Barstool Sports guy — who really gets it!
And then there was a great take by Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, who seems to be the only Garden State leader (including its newspapers) with any credibility at this point:
Mayoral wannabe Whitney Tilson echoed that.
About the only local elected official who didn't have anything to say about the demise of congestion pricing was President Trump's man in New York, Mayor Adams:
Even the city's former DOT commissioner showed up Hizzoner:
In other news:
- Speaking of the mayor, the fate of his corruption case and Gov. Hochul's decision to remove him from office remain pending. (NY Times)
- Bizarro World: Leave it to the NY Post to spin the news that the city DOT had reduced the speed at which drivers can make all the green lights on Third Avenue into a story about how the roadway is now unsafe (completely ignoring our story on the same subject).
- Despite all the congestion pricing talk, the Gateway Tunnel project is continuing ... for now. (The City)
- Here's an idea worth debating: Fully funding transit would reduce crime in the subway. (Public News Service)
- The Times finally gave parking reform legend Donald Shoup a proper obit.
- Speaking of obits, Hell Gate went full Tiger Beat take on the end of the political love affair between Mayor Adams and Assembly Member Jenifer Rajkumar.
