Transcript: Mayor De Blasio Appears Live on CNN’s New Day

June 26, 2020

Alisyn Camerota: Ten days from now, New York City is set to enter phase three of its reopening. And that means indoor dining at restaurants with a limited capacity. And things like basketball courts, soccer fields, and dog runs will be open. Joining us now with this and more is New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. Mr. Mayor, great to see you this morning. I can see your excitement at the concept and prospect of reopening and I – you're not alone. Lots of people are excited, and not to be a wet blanket, but this morning, Mr. Mayor, as you look at the national map of the majority of states going in the wrong direction, are you also nervous at the prospect of what could happen in New York? And if it could boomerang back here?

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Yeah. Alisyn, excited, but nervous is the right way to think about it. We've been through hell. You know it. New York City went through so much. We're finally making a really strong comeback. It's exciting. It's a great feeling. We have outdoor dining now happening, a lot of businesses coming back, and yet we're looking at states around the country, most states seem to be having more and more trouble. And that makes me worried. So, we watch the data every single day, Alisyn. And I think this was the mistake, bluntly, some places in this country made, was to make the decisions, whether it was politics or some other consideration, rather than based on the data. We watch the health care data all the time. We share it with the people. We explain how it connects to the decisions that we make. So far, so good. We're seeing the percentage of people testing positive has been at two percent consistently, relatively few people in the hospital. That's the good news, but we are watching this national situation because I'm worried about a resurgence obviously for all of us.

Camerota: And, look, so many people love to come to New York, so many tourists. This is a great vacation spot for people. How are you going to keep travelers from those other states from coming into New York this summer?

Mayor: Look, we want people – as the economy starts to rebound, as life starts to move in the right direction, we want people to visit us. But first, if they're coming from a state that's having a real problem, we need them to quarantine. And so, some people that are coming here for a longer stay that could work, for other people that may not work, but we need to be about safety and health first. Look, if we get enough testing around this country – and it's still the great Achilles Heel that our federal government has never provided enough testing and the follow through to keep people safe, eventually we're going to get out of this, obviously a vaccine one day. But for now, my central concern is the health and safety of New Yorkers. We're doing pretty well on our own. We're going to be really careful about anyone who comes to visit.

Camerota: Fourth of July is coming up. How are you going to make sure that people don't congregate and are safe?

Mayor: So, we're doing something different this year, Alisyn. You know, we, every year, have had the amazing fireworks show Macy's puts on. They've been great partners with this city, but instead of one big show, we're going to split up into sort of mini shows around the five boroughs, late notice so it's not about a bunch of people congregating, but people watching from their rooftops, from their blocks, you know, getting to see something and feel that moment of pride in our country and how far we've come this year, but not having big mass gatherings. We don't want that.

Camerota: Do you think that Broadway is going to open this year?

Mayor: I'm, look – I'm always going to hold out hope. I think it's fair to say, Alisyn, not this summer. This is something the earliest you could talk about is this fall. And it really gets back to the data. If we continue to get healthier and healthier, as we have been here in New York City, I'd love to see that day, but, of course, you'd have to assume not full capacity to begin. We're going to work with Broadway. We're going to see if there's a way, but health and safety first again. We're not going to jump until we're sure it's safe.

Camerota: Okay. On another topic, you want to paint a big Black Lives Matter mural across from Trump Tower.

Mayor: Yes.

Camerota: As expected, this has gotten President Trump's attention. He tweeted about this. He says, “I'm told that New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio wants to paint the fabled and beautiful Fifth Avenue right in front of Trump Tower/Tiffany with a big, yellow Black Lives Matter sign.” Then he says something that is false. I won't read it. And then he goes on to say, “Police are furious.” Your reaction –

Mayor: Alisyn, so many things he says are so broken. Look, this country was built by the labor of African Americans, including enslaved African Americans. The only reason you have a Fifth Avenue and all the greatness of New York City and America is because of the labor of Black people that has so often gone uncompensated in so many ways. We need to make clear to the whole country that Black lives matter. So, why not put it right where it matters most, the center of the city, Fifth Avenue, and send a message to the president because he does not embrace Black Lives Matter. He totally misunderstands. And then he tries to denigrate this movement that is about humanity and associate it with things that have nothing to do with Black Lives Matter.

Look, there's – Alisyn, our police force is majority people of color, including a lot of proud African-Americans. He doesn't understand that police today, more and more, reject the past and don't want to see us go backwards. And the president only knows how to divide. I mean, this is the thing that is so evident in his response. This could have been a moment for a magnanimous approach, Alisyn. The president could have said, ‘Look, I'm happy to see Black Lives Matter right in front of my own doorstep, because I want this country to be whole.’ Instead he goes to the one trick he knows, which is to try and divide people, to be a racial arsonist. When in fact he's supposed to be our national healer.

Camerota: Look, you've been very candid about the financial dire straits that New York City is in, that this pandemic has only exacerbated. And, in fact, you're saying that unless you get billions of federal dollars, you're going to have to lay off tens of thousands of City workers. And so, do you think that a public spat like this with President Trump is going to help Republicans in Congress feel sympathy for New York?

Mayor: Alisyn, I made a decision to honor the Black people of this city and all of America, African Americans who built this city, by simply saying Black Lives Matter and putting it someplace where it would get the attention it deserves. That is not anything but respect, a show of respect for people who deserve that respect. The president decided to turn it into a political controversy for his own ends. But on the question of this city, the nation's largest city, one of the great engines of the American economy, if the president wants America to restart and recover, he has to help New York City and all cities and states that are suffering. Alisyn, if we don't get the federal stimulus by October 1st, we have to lay off 22,000 teachers, educators, firefighters, EMTs, health care workers, the people who are the heroes in the fight against the coronavirus.

A lot of them now won't have a job because there's just no money. There's no revenue. We don't – as you said, the tourists haven't been here for a long time. A lot of what we depended on is not going to happen in this city for a long, long time. The federal government should step in and help us recover. So far, Donald Trump hasn't said a word about trying to help American cities and states back on their feet. So, no, I'm quite clear, if the president was doing his job, he would have gotten the Senate to do the stimulus already so we could all move forward. He doesn't seem to care.

Camerota: Mayor Bill de Blasio, we really appreciate your time. Thank you very much for explaining what these next few weeks should look like in New York.

Mayor: Thank you, Alisyn.