The Case Against Eric Adams and Company: A Virtual Panel
The Case Against Eric Adams and Company: How Bad Is It Really and What Comes Next?
Tuesday, October 15th, 10 - 11:15 a.m.
With the federal investigations ongoing, the steady drumbeat of Adams administration resignations and new criminal allegations have continued. Where is this headed? How strong is the government's case against the mayor? What does the United States Attorney’s promise that the “investigation continues” mean? What are the implications for governance? And what does recent history teach us about the severity of the corruption charges?
In a virtual panel, Vital City and Columbia Journalism School (CJS) brought together leading experts on city government, public corruption and local politics to answer these and other big questions.
Introductory Remarks: Jelani Cobb joined the Columbia Journalism School faculty in 2016 and became Dean in 2022. He has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 2015 and was a finalist for the 2018 Pulitzer Prize in Commentary. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Journalism Project and the Board of Trustees of the New York Public Library. In 2023, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Dr. Cobb has a B.A. in English from Howard University and completed his M.A. and doctorate in American History at Rutgers University in 2003.
Moderator: Errol Louis is the political anchor of Spectrum News NY1, where he hosts Inside City Hall, a nightly prime-time show that focuses on New York politics. He is a Vital City contributing writer.
Panelists:
Stan Brezenoff is a longtime leading civil servant, formerly serving as First Deputy Mayor under Mayor Ed Koch and as Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. He also served in various leadership positions, including as Interim President and CEO of NYC Health + Hospitals. Additionally Brezenoff served as Chair of the Board of Correction and President and CEO of Continuum Health Partners. Previously, Brezenoff worked at the Ford Foundation for 10 years and served as Commissioner of the NYC Department of Employment and Administrator of the NYC Human Resources Administration. Brezenoff was born in East New York, and majored in Philosophy at Brooklyn College.
Carrie H. Cohen, formerly an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the SDNY and Chief of the Public Integrity Bureau for the NYAG, is global co-chair of MoFo’s Investigations + White Collar Defense and State + Local Government Enforcement groups. Cohen represents corporations, boards, and c-suite executives in government-facing investigative and regulatory matters. At SDNY, Cohen obtained the first convictions of former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. At NYAG, she received the Louis J. Lefkowitz Memorial Award for outstanding service. Cohen is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she teaches Public Corruption and the Law.
Tom Robbins has covered political corruption as a journalist for four decades and is the investigative journalist in residence at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY since February 2011. Robbins has been a columnist and staff writer at the Village Voice, the New York Daily News and The New York Observer.
Basil Smikle has been a political strategist and policy advisor for 30 years with local, national, and international experience. Currently, he is a professor at Columbia University’s School of Professional Studies and an MSNBC Political Analyst. In 2015, Smikle was appointed to serve as the executive director of the New York State Democratic Party. Smikle holds a PhD in politics and education and an MPA from Columbia University.