New York mayor under pressure over campaign finance claims

On Monday evening last week, as the mayor of New York Eric Adams was leaving an event at a local university in the city, the FBI approached.

Federal agents asked the mayor’s security detail to step aside. Inside his official car, they presented Adams with an authorised search warrant that allowed them to take two mobile phones and an iPad.

The incident marked a considerable escalation in an official investigation which had first come to public attention several days earlier when the FBI searched the home of one of the mayor’s fundraisers and seized laptops and phones.

The search of the property of the fundraiser on November 2nd formed part of a broader investigation. Broadcaster CNN reported that overall about 100 FBI agents executed warrants or carried out interviews at about a dozen locations.

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US media has reported that the investigation is looking at campaign finance issues and whether Adams had assisted the government of Turkey to open a new diplomatic facility in Manhattan.

The mayor’s office this week insisted that no one had been accused of wrongdoing and that it was co-operating fully. His chief legal counsel at city hall in New York maintained that there was no indication that Adams, who is a retired police captain, was a target in the investigation.

The mayor’s campaign said last week it had “proactively reported to investigators” an incident of improper behaviour that had been uncovered.

The New York Times said the warrant indicated that authorities were looking at whether the Turkish government or Turkish nationals had funnelled donations to Adams using a so-called straw donor scheme

However, there has been no real official clarity about the background to the investigation.

Adams himself said there was “an ongoing review” under way. He said he had told his team that they must “follow the law”.

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In comments that lent some credence to claims that the investigation related to campaign finance issues, the mayor said: “We don’t do the straw donors, and a lot of people don’t know what that means, but we don’t do the straw donors. We don’t do quid pro quo. We follow the law.” A so-called straw donor scheme involves a list of contributors who are not the actual source of the money.

The New York Times said the warrant obtained by the FBI to search the home of the fundraiser on November 2nd was aimed at seeking evidence of a conspiracy to violate campaign finance law between members of Adams’s campaign, the Turkish government or Turkish nationals, and a construction company in the city which had owners who were originally from Turkey.

The New York Times said the warrant indicated that authorities were looking at whether the Turkish government or Turkish nationals had funnelled donations to Adams using a so-called straw donor scheme.

Media reports also suggested that the federal investigation was looking at the opening of a new Turkish consulate in New York in September 2021.

At that time Adams had won the Democratic primary election to be the party’s candidate for mayor. Given the politics of the city, it was virtually certain that he would be the next mayor of New York.

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During that period, the new consulate was also awaiting the final approval from the fire department. The timing was critical as the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was due in the city to attend the United Nations general assembly, which takes place in September each year.

Media reports suggested the investigation is looking at whether Adams had tried to ease any concerns on the part of fire safety authorities to allow the 35-storey building to open on time.

At a press conference on Tuesday the mayor said he had reached out to the fire commissioner about the new Turkish consulate but suggested that this was routine.

“This is what elected officials, what we do. When the constituency reaches out to us for assistance to another agency, we reach out to the agency.

The mayor was asked at his press conference whether he believed the federal investigation was linked to recent criticism he had made of immigration policy under the Biden administration which, he has argued, has placed considerable strain on New York City

“You reach out to an agency and ask them to look into a matter. You don’t reach out to an agency to compel them to do anything, because I had no authority to do so.”

Adams said that at the time he was Brooklyn borough president and there was a large Turkish population in the area.

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“And we reached out to the commissioner to assist to find out what was happening and asked him to look at that.”

He said the fire commissioner was “an optimum professional”.

“And I’m sure he’s going to take the necessary questioning. And if he was able to do something, he would. And if he couldn’t, he would say he couldn’t.”

The mayor was asked at his press conference whether he believed the federal investigation was linked to recent criticism he had made of immigration policy under the Biden administration which, he has argued, has placed considerable strain on New York City.

“Well, our criticism, critique, analysis is based on the fact that this is unsustainable for New York City. And I can’t speculate that it was people are upset because I’m raising that. I must fight on behalf of New Yorkers.”