New York Gov. Kathy Hochul harshly criticized the Trump administration's decision to repeal a congestion pricing plan for Manhattan, further mocking him for referring to himself as "the king" on social media.
"I'm here to say, New York hasn't labored under a king in over 250 years, and we sure as hell are not going to start now," the governor said. "The streets of the city where battles were fought, we stood up to a king, and we won then. In case you don't know New Yorkers, when we're in a fight, we do not back down — not now, not ever."
On Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy motioned to end a toll program within Manhattan assisting with congestion relief less than two months after it was implemented, reported amNewYork. Trump then took to his own social media app, Truth Social, to celebrate this adjustment and credit himself with saving the city.
"CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!" he wrote.
"CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!"
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 19, 2025
–President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/IMr4tq0sMB
Right after the Trump administration announced developments on congestion pricing, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) filed a lawsuit attempting to reverse their actions and reinstate congestion pricing. Hochul, who believes the MTA's suit will be successful, stated that "the cameras are staying on."
"We're in fight mode within seconds of us getting this notification. Our MTA was prepared; we knew this could come," Hochul said.
"New York ain't going back," MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, as reported by amNewYork. "We tried gridlock for 60 years. It didn't work. It cost our economy billions, but you know what's helping our economy? What's making New York a better place is congestion pricing."
"We've been sued in every court east of the Mississippi and we won every time. This is gonna be another one," Lieber added.
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