WSJ editorial cheers de Blasio exit from office: 'Eight years of progressive failure'

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The Wall Street Journal editorial board punctuated New York Mayor Bill de Blasio’s final day in office with a "hallelujah" and a warning of the "mess" Eric Adams will inherit. 

The Journal called the occasion a "special reason to celebrate" this New Year’s Eve and described de Blasio’s two terms as a progressive failure. 

"Everything in the city is worse than Mr. de Blasio found it," the board wrote. 

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De Blasio’s recent years have been plagued with a rise in crime throughout the city and a simultaneous cry from the left for less police funding. 

The board is optimistic, however, that Mayor-elect Adams has the opportunity to turn things around. His victory in the Democratic primary – which essentially guaranteed his election in the heavily blue city – was taken as a sign of a pushback in the party against the more "woke" candidates.

"One encouraging sign is that Mr. Adams has talked about bringing back an improved version of the plainclothes, anti-crime units that were so effective in getting guns out of the hands of criminals," the board wrote. 

Democratic candidate for New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul greet each other after Adams is declared victor at his election night party in Brooklyn, New York, U.S. November 2, 2021. (REUTERS/Andrew Kelly)

The WSJ maintained that Adams will have to bring back Rudy Giuliani and Mike Bloomberg-era policies to effectively reduce crime and homelessness.

The board also noted that the mayor-elect will have to implement policies to bring back residents and businesses, many of which have left for lower-tax states like Florida. 

Adams acknowledged the consequences of the tax issue during his candidacy, and the board warned New York City will face a "financial debacle" if it is not corrected before the next economic downturn.

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The board criticized de Blasio for "squandering" the improvements made during the Giuliani and Bloomberg years, pointing to the "regression" seen in the public school system.

"Mr. de Blasio waged a war on charter schools at the behest of the teachers union, and a war on merit in the name of social justice," it wrote.

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)

"His obsession with racial equity led him to water down admissions to selective high schools, phase out gifted and talented programs in grade schools and punish charters at every turn."

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The board noted that Adams will have to focus on results to generate true progress after de Blasio’s time in office.