PALM BEACH, Fla. (1010 WINS) – Mayor Eric Adams met with President-elect Donald Trump in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday to discuss issues affecting New Yorkers, not his legal case, according to his statement.
The meeting, which was not announced in advance and only mentioned a day earlier, was confirmed by New York City Deputy Mayor of Communications Fabien Levy via a post on X. Levy shared the mayor’s official statement and clarified that initial reports claiming the meeting took place at Trump’s private residence at Mar-a-Lago were false, stating instead that it occurred at the Trump International Golf Club.
“President Trump and I had a productive conversation about New York’s needs and what’s best for our city, and how the federal government can play a more helpful role in improving the lives of New Yorkers,” Adams wrote in his statement.
Adams specified that their discussion centered on the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas and its implications for public safety in the nation, the potential to bring manufacturing jobs back to New York, particularly in the Bronx, and federal investments in infrastructure for the city.
He also clarified that they did not discuss his indictment.
“To be clear, we did not discuss my legal case, and those who suggest the mayor of the largest city in the nation shouldn’t meet with the incoming president to discuss our city’s priorities because of inaccurate speculation or because we’re from different parties clearly care more about politics than people,” Adams said.
A federal grand jury indicted Adams in September on charges alleging he accepted luxury travel perks and illegal campaign contributions from foreign nationals in exchange for favors, including helping Turkish diplomatic officials resolve fire safety issues at a diplomatic building in Manhattan. The charges include one count of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy, two counts of soliciting contributions from a foreign national, and one count of bribery.
Adams pleaded not guilty to all charges and is scheduled to go on trial in April.
This meeting comes just days before Trump’s inauguration amid concerns about how his administration’s immigration and fiscal policies could impact New Yorkers.
Notably, Trump had previously hinted at the possibility of issuing a pardon for Adams, who faces a federal corruption trial in the spring. “He went against what was happening with the migrants coming in,” Trump had said last month. “And a few months later, he got indicted. So yeah, I would certainly look at a pardon.”
Adams has said he suspects he was prosecuted because he had criticized President Joe Biden’s immigration policies. The former U.S. attorney who brought the case has said politics wasn’t a consideration.