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New York Mayor Eric Adams has accused the Democratic governor of Colorado of launching an “unfair” plan to send an influx of immigrants to the Big Apple.
Jared Polis, the Democratic governor of Colorado, called the mayor of New York on Monday night to inform him that a large number of immigrants would be transported to the city.
Adams publicly criticized the plan Tuesday morning, insisting that New York has accepted its fair share of immigrants, adding: “There is no more room at the inn.”
The row marks a rare confrontation between two high-ranking Democrats over the issue of migrants crossing the Mexican border into the United States. Previous rows have focused on red states like Texas, Florida and Arizona that send immigrants to red states that have taken a much softer approach on the issue.
Adams said during a radio appearance Tuesday morning: “We were notified yesterday that the governor of Colorado is now declaring that they will send immigrants to places like New York and Chicago.
Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis called New York City Mayor Eric Adams Monday night to warn of an influx of immigrants from the state.
Adams publicly criticized Polis’s plan and insisted that New York has taken its fair share of immigrants, adding: “There is no more room at the inn.”
“It is simply unfair that local governments have to assume this national obligation…
‘This has really had an impact on the quality of life in New York and our ability to provide long-term New Yorkers with the needs they have during this difficult time. So this needs to be addressed.’
After Adams’ comments, Polis’s office appeared to suggest there was no new policy. He said the so-called influx was actually due to recent weather and travel chaos that had prevented immigrants from traveling earlier.
Either way, New York City is poised for a new influx of immigrants.
An image from December 2022 shows buses carrying immigrants to New York City from Texas.
New York City has received thousands of immigrants from red states in 2022
The prospect of Colorado relocating people to New York City and Chicago is a departure from the typical approach of Democratic leadership toward immigrant housing.
Republican governors of Texas, Florida and Arizona moved more than 10,000 migrants to Democratic cities in 2022, according to a recent analysis by Axios shows
A statement from Polis’s office said 70 percent of migrants arriving in Denver “do not have Colorado as their final destination” and “due to weather and labor shortages, they have experienced transportation cancellations.”
Polis said, ‘No one should play politics with the lives of immigrants who came here to escape oppression, and in Colorado we are honoring our values of treating people with dignity and respect.
‘We are simply carrying out our values of treating all human beings with dignity and respect.
‘Coloradans would expect no less of us to stand up for our shared values to help people fleeing oppression.
“The stories I heard firsthand from the migrants are heartbreaking and we are helping these people complete their long and arduous journey.
“States and cities can no longer bear this burden alone and Congress must finally step up: We need an immediate pathway to work permits and finally enact better border security and immigration reform.”
Adams said the influx of immigrants has “really impacted the quality of life in New York, and our ability to provide long-term, everyday New Yorkers with the needs that they have.”
Officials in Colorado, which is not a sanctuary state like New York, are working with nonprofit organizations, including some that work specifically with the Venezuelan community, to help migrants get to their “preferred locations.”
The apparent shift in party norms is nothing new to Polis, who is something of an incendiary in Democratic circles.
He enforced one of the shortest stay-at-home measures of any Democratic governor during the covid shutdowns. He also took a less stringent approach to school closures than other Democratic governors.
His libertarian approach to some issues has even led him to accuse Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican poster boy, of “socialism.”
In April 2022, Polis expressed his disagreement over DeSantis’ support for legislation that would strip Disney of its special status as a home rule area in Florida, which was ultimately passed by the state House of Representatives.
Polis then accused DeSantis of using socialist tactics to control the private sector and invited Disney to leave the Sunshine State and move to Colorado.
Polis, 47, made history when he became the first openly gay governor after winning the state’s gubernatorial race in 2018. She married her husband, Marlon Reis, in 2021.
Kate Brown became the first bisexual governor when she was elected in Oregon in 2015, while another governor, Jim McGreevey of New Jersey, came out as gay before resigning in 2004. Polis was the first openly gay candidate to be elected governor.