EXCLUSIVE: Former President Donald Trump, in an interview with Fox News, left the door open on whether he will return to New York City, with Mayor Bill de Blasio's term ending and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo having resigned.
In 2019, Trump, a born-and-raised New Yorker, announced that he had changed his permanent residence to Palm Beach, Fla. Trump said the move was due to the way politicians in New York City and the state treated him.
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But with Cuomo out of office amid allegations of sexual harassment, and de Blasio’s term leaving office at the end of the year, Trump could weigh a return to his hometown.
"So, it was shocking what happened to Cuomo," Trump told Fox News when asked if he would return to the Big Apple. "He was a strong governor—strong meaning he had pretty good control."
He added: "That was a shocking event."
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a news conference, Monday, April 26, 2021 at the New York State Fair Grounds in Syracuse, N.Y. In his first face-to-face encounter with journalists in months, Cuomo flatly denied he had done anything inappropriate with any of the women who have accused him of sexual harassment. (N. Scott Trimble/Syracuse Post-Standard via AP) (N. Scott Trimble/Syracuse Post-Standard via AP)
Trump was referring to Cuomo’s forced resignation in August amid a sexual harassment probe following accusations brought by 11 women who worked for him. Cuomo has since been charged with a misdemeanor sex crime.
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"And de Blasio goes down as probably the worst mayor in the history of our country, and that’s saying something because we have some really bad mayors right now," Trump said. "But he goes down as the worst mayor in the history of our country."
Trump said "what he has done to New York is unthinkable."
New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio makes declarations at a mass vaccination site at Yankee Stadium amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the Bronx borough of New York City, New York, U.S., February 5, 2021. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri (REUTERS/Carlo Allegri)
"I have so many people coming up to me saying they moved to Florida, Texas, Tennessee, from New York—to North Carolina, South Carolina," he said. "He has been a horrible representative of this country and a horrible representative of New York."
"Look at what's happened to New York," Trump continued. "When I left, you could see the effects, he was having some effects already with crime and people on the streets and dirt."
He added: "When I left, I considered it a great city. He has destroyed the city."
Democratic candidate Eric Adams won the mayoral election in New York last week and will succeed de Blasio. De Blasio is leaving office due to term limits.
"I hope he's going to do good," Trump said.
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When pressed on whether he would move back to the city, he said: "I don't know. Look, I have a good relationship with New York. I love New York, it's a great place."
trump-tower-sales (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
In 2019, upon his departure, Trump said: "I cherish New York, and the people of New York, and always will, but unfortunately, despite the fact that I pay millions of dollars in city, state and local taxes each year, I have been treated very badly by the political leaders of both the city and state. Few have been treated worse."
He said, at the time, that he would "always be there to help New York and the great people of New York," adding that it would "always have a special place" in his heart.
Trump's business dealings are the subject of a criminal probe led by the Manhattan DA's office and state attorney general. A new grand jury was seated last month in the case, which has resulted in tax fraud charges against Trump's company and its longtime CFO Allen Weisselberg.
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