Mayor Bill de Blasio is most responsible for New York City's decline, according to the author of a new book about the Big Apple.
Seth Barron, who wrote "The Last Days of New York: a reporter's true tale," spoke about de Blasio and why he's to blame for the city's downturn.
"He's the guy, he's been in charge," Barron said on Fox News Channel. "He pushed the narrative of 'a tale of two cities,' and class division and racial division. So in a sense, yeah, it is his fault.
"He's had a lot of help. There are a lot of socialists and progressives who had his back and have been completely behind his terrible policies."
De Blasio has delivered on free universal pre-K, expanded paid sick leave, and reduced stop-and-frisk policing. He also has overseen the city’s $15 minimum wage hike.
"He's been very lucky because New York never really suffered under the recession," Barron said. "You know we were bailed out by the federal government, the financial industry was. And all along he's had plenty of tax revenue. He's never had a budget, he could just spend every dime he wanted to.
"And then he got very lucky because he skirted all of his corruption cases. And now with [President Joe] Biden in, he’s gotten a huge windfall, a big federal bailout, so he doesn't even have to fire anyone."
Barron was asked about de Blasio's wife, Chirlane McCray, who reportedly spent $1 billion on her mental illness project, ThriveNYC
"He put her in charge of mental health … her mental health plan, even though she's not a psychotherapist, no training in that," Barron said. "She’s a speechwriter, and not a very good one. She also has 14 full-time staff members, like a videographer. He has spent money like it's something to just flush down the toilet."
De Blasio has run the city while maintaining a poor relationship with Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y.
"They hate each other," Barron said. "They're constantly trying to step on each other. This goes back to the Clinton administration when de Blasio worked for Cuomo and there's some very bad blood. It just became an ego match."
Barron's new book, published by Humanix Books, details how New York has seen crime and homelessness soar as thousands of taxpayers have fled. It's a history of New York City — its recovery from the 2008-09 recession through the triple disaster of the pandemic, civil unrest, and collapse in revenue during 2020.
"Barron cuts through the noise and provides a devastating account of a city’s decline under the delusional leadership of socialists and con men," said Newsmax’s Greg Kelly, host of "Greg Kelly Reports."
Barron, an associate editor of urban policy at City Journal, is a New York City-based reporter/editor who has covered local politics closely for more than 10 years.