Good Morning, New York! Trump is taking over control of the Penn Station renovation from the MTA, the state budget may finally be in its final stages, and Andrew Cuomo is hit with accusations of a Biden-esque declining mental state. This is your Tammany Times AM Briefing for Friday, April 18th, 2025.

WHERE’S KATHY: In Onondaga County for Remarks at McMahon Ryan’s Go Blue 4 Kids Breakfast and then in Albany.

WHERE’s ERIC: No public schedule available

TIPS? Email me: [email protected]

Front Pages

Hall Monitors

— The federal government is seizing control of the Penn Station rebuild, booting the MTA from the driver's seat. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy claims this is to cut reckless spending and ensure taxpayer dollars are used wisely. Hochul says the move saves NYers $1.3 billion. (Gothamist)

— NYC's composting program is off to a smashing start, collecting a record 3.8 million pounds of food waste in just one week. The city is opening a new compost site in Astoria to deal with the overflowing demand, but not everyone's thrilled about the program; some landlords are complaining about the new mandates, and a small group in the City Council is trying to roll back the fines. Despite the complaints, the Sanitation Department says participation is up, and fines are slightly down. (NY Post)

— Two senior NYC officials are in hot water for allegedly misusing their positions for political gain. DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez got fined $1,750 for stumping for Kamala Harris at a city event, while ex-NYPD Assistant Commissioner Gui An Lin, already under scrutiny for alleged ties to the Chinese Communist Party, faces a $5,000 fine for fundraising for Mayor Adams. (NY Daily News)

Capitol Gains

— The budget might finally be in sight! Though lawmakers are heading home for the Easter weekend without a done deal, they've reportedly made progress on key sticking points like changes to discovery laws and school cell phone bans. Still on the table: involuntary commitments for the mentally ill and a controversial face mask ban that's facing pushback due to religious and immigration concerns. (State of Politics)

— Trump's putting the brakes on a major offshore wind project in New York, claiming the Biden admin rushed its approval. Gov. Hochul is not backing down and promises a fight to protect jobs and affordable energy. Republicans like Nassau County Executive Blakeman are praising the decision, citing concerns over safety and the environment, while labor groups say Trump is politicizing clean energy. (Gothamist)

— In an act of vandalism, someone taped swastikas to the New York Republican Party headquarters in Albany. While police investigate, some Republicans are blaming Democrats, citing comparisons of Trump to Hitler during his rallies. Democrats have condemned the vandalism. (Times Union)

Trail Mix

— State Senator Jessica Ramos is claiming Andrew Cuomo’s mental state is declining. Ramos even went as far as saying that New York City can't risk another "Joe Biden moment" with Cuomo at the helm. Cuomo's campaign fired back, dismissing Ramos as a "desperate extreme left socialist" and declining to comment on whether Cuomo would take a mental competency test. (NY Post)

— George Santos might not be getting off easy: The DOJ is asking the court to hit the former congressman with a heavy sentence, citing his 'unrepentant' social media behavior. Prosecutors point to Santos's tweets blaming the DOJ for scapegoating him while letting sex traffickers and drug lords off the hook. Santos, who pleaded guilty to fraud last year, faces a minimum of two years, but the DOJ wants 87 months. (NY Daily News)

— AOC for president in 2028? Nate Silver thinks it's a strong possibility. In his new Substack newsletter, "Silver Bulletin," Silver and Galen Druke pointed to the New York Representative as a likely top pick for the Democratic Party in the coming years. (The Hill)