As a hard core liberal and Democrat, I think NY and Cuomo are wrong on their DMV Debacle and need to retreat on this one and repeal the law.
That said, I always find it “rich” when Republicans and Trump scream, “State’s rights!” ... when it’s a red state. When it’s a blue state, they love to poke, complain and meddle.
7
This is extortion!!! Trump belongs in prison NOT the White House!!!!!
5
What a mess. And in the midst of it all, a man being interviewed by a female reporter insults her, unwittingly or not, by calling her “honey.” No, I am not being picky. He was disrespecting her profession in a way that he wouldn’t if she were a man; he should understand this and not do it again.
4
I see both Governors Cuomo and Murphy antagonizing the President, then turning around and either asking for federal funding, or upset about unfair federal regulations such as the one mentioned in this article. Retribution - it's what Trump is all about - he gets mad, and he gets even. So, what does Cuomo do, insults, lawsuits and everything else he can do to insure our state, and city, feel the brunt of President Trump. No finesse here - Gov. Cuomo has an ego almost as large as Trump's, although he's not morally bankrupt. It's one thing not to agree with Trump's policies, it's another to continually berate him, especially when campaigning, and then you're surprised to feel the wrath when you're in office.
1
Obviously, this is a thinly-veiled pretext to further Trump's immigration agenda. But isn't there a simple work around: the car owners or shipping companies simply transfer title to another state (e.g. New Jersey) before the car is shipped out?
1
If you bought a car using a stolen identity and credit it would be out of the country before being caught as stolen. Do you really think that you can buy a legitimate car in nyc and sell it in “the Caribbean, west Africa, or the Middle East” at a profit after shipping costs. These cars are mostly fraudulently obtained.
3
We know why this is happening, and it’s got nothing to do with national security. President Trump wants N.Y. to drop their investigations into his finances. He said exactly that after the Global Entry was stopped. Another quid pro quo.
13
If the government can add exceptions to tax code to give individuals and groups like real estate developers loopholes to not pay taxes that everyone else pays can't they make it so that one particular business or developer for example has to pay something like 150 percent of revenue or the estimated property tax for the next 50 years all at once instead of the 10 years they don't have to pay anything or very little? New Yorkers can no longer get the deductions they did in the past for local taxes thanks to the new federal tax code so why can't NYS take away all the deductions from a business or individual too.
1
Trump has always been a scared little boy, who will bully anyone and everyone from discovering what he really is. A con. He takes pleasures in destroying ones hopes, dreams and success. He does this because he believes no one else should be able to realise the American dream but him. Because he is 'special". How dare he stop the flow of cars especially to countries in desperate need of them.
How dare he deny New Yorkers who are US citizens the right to apply for global entry and blame it on illegal aliens getting Global Entry status. (hogwash). How dare he try to terminate funding for the arts and public television.
To survive he must control everything. And the rate this is all going with the blessing of all his zombies that's exactly what will happen.
So please vote in 2020. And Democratic candidates for president stop bickering with each other and make a unified plan. The country is almost in paralysis.
11
People should actually think through the reasons for New York's actions, before their knee-jerk reactions that this is due to leftists, or Trump hatred, or some other purely political reason. It is safer for everyone if drivers have to pass a driving test, be licensed, and carry insurance. This is true for all drivers, including the undocumented. But if you are undocumented, and know that ICE will be able to use your license information to track you down and deport you, do you ignore that and get a license anyway? Of course not, so you drive without a license and without insurance. Woe to anyone involved in an accident with you. All "sanctuary cities" have practical, non-political reasons for their actions. For example, making the police act as agents of ICE makes the undocumented unlikely to cooperate with them, increasing the rate of unsolved crimes. Blaming politics is just a too-convenient excuse.
8
If Mr. Cuccinelli is spotted in NY it would seem that he would understand the need to check his papers. While they are being checked, and that might be quite a while as they are walked between offices, detain him in Rikers.
6
It is pretty fascinating - doesn't Trump know that many Republicans also live in New York State? He is harming them also with his punitive, revenge-driven policies.
5
So, King Trump the First has told his loyalists to inflict economic pain on its feudal state of New York. Why you ask because we are no longer a republic. Laws are set by the King and if you do not obey them off to the dungeon with you! My beloved country is in deep trouble. What happened to the Republican chant for State's Rights and all the other rights that are being trampled?????
11
Hang tough, New York. This turkey won't be in office forever.
8
Secession?
You all really need to get over yourselves. You and California. You don't run, you fight. Got that? Trump's not making me go anywhere but the voting booth.
4
Here's a message to Cuomo and the other die hard liberals who now control Albany: What goes around, comes around. Flaunt the federal government with drivers' licenses for illegal aliens, the elimination of detention in lieu of bail for repeat criminals, and sanctuary cities, and you can expect the federal government to hit you back, hard. And you deserve it.
4
What goes around does indeed come around, my friend. Trump and his devotees have a tidal wave headed in their direction, if not sooner, then later
10
The most concerning thing in the entire article is the almost casual mention of the fact that an entire industry is too afraid of retribution by the Trump administration to talk on the record. It's just one step from there to administration officials combing over campaign finance records to identify Democratic contributors for punishment - or to identify those who didn't contribute to Trump to punish them.
One by one, Trump is eliminating every obstacle to absolute power. First he tamed the Republican Party. Then he unilaterally terminated the House Democrats' oversight function. Then he brought the Justice Department and the FBI to heel. He's worked hard to delegitimize the independent judiciary and the independent press. He punishes private companies that don't cater to him - like Amazon, simply because its owner also owns the Washington Post, or Facebook, because it doesn't prominently enough feature conservative causes and ideas. Now he's attacking states that don't see things his way.
Welcome to the American Banana Republic.
13
I hope everyone who wants the records to remain private are so eager to protect the rights of everyone when states refuse to turn over gun info to the federal government.
1
How often have we heard the conservative cry: "Presidents shouldn't pick winners and losers?" Oh, wait, just like trillion dollar deficit spending, that doesn't matter unless it's a Dem that's in office.
All I can say is, by the end of 2024, I wonder what the U.S. is going to become: that shining mansion on the hill, or just another two-bit, dystopian dream of the oligarchs?
14
NY should do nothing more than pursue its legal claims. When companies are out of business and tax revenues fall short, Trump will be to blame. The people will punish Trump.
4
How about NY sending building inspectors into all the trump properties and finding them unfit for occupation?
19
Would they actually have to be unfit for occupation, or does the end justify the means.
3
It is too simple to blame Trump for this one. The reason for this is software integration. The system was designed around states sending DMV information to the Feds. This information gets loaded into the federal database so that some Customs inspector can type in a VIN and get the vehicle’s data immediately. That’s it! The whole data transfer mechanism is based on software design, data standardization and security. It does not matter that this data exists elsewhere – to “wire up” a different database would require software changes in the Federal system.
5
@MikeS So? No good reason.
2
I suggest piling up some of these cars at the entrance to 26 Federal Plaza and the federal courthouses in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Also, since the federal government does not pay real estate taxes, NYC should post large signs, on the city sidewalk, announcing that there will be no city services provided to these buildings, including - sanitation, police, fire or EMS protection.
Let Mr. Trump and the Department of Homeland Insecurity provide fire and police protection.
Also, the NYPD should arrest all federal employees who wear clothing that says "POLICE" in violation of the Penal Law.
6
And then the feds could move the stock exchange out of Nyc and the state would go bankrupt, while the feds paid for private sanitation and ems at a lower cost.
2
Trump’s out of control.How about a national tax strike?
7
It's clear that Trump has declared war on the citizens of NY. I would expect our leaders to fully engage - I'm sure there is plenty that can be done to attack the dodgy dealings of the Trump family in this state, and it would be about time!
14
New York state let Trump and his family skate on so much illegal stuff for decades. Had they gone after them then we would never have had this nightmare.
21
Trump excels at corrupting and using government agencies for his personal vendettas ; beyond the pale . It is obscene , with a heart full of larceny his lessons learned well at the hands of his early mentors . His academic record may have been just passable but his bent in the art of the rip-off , usury and pay-back is excellent , more suited for a mafia don .
6
This is the consequence of the Democrats wasting time and enormous amounts of money going on fishing expeditions to try to 'get' Trump. Instead of our politicians working with him to try to alleviate the SALT tax laws, soaring drug prices, or something else productive, they are determined to not let the the President claim any sort of victory. Instead, we the people are the ones who are suffering.
7
@Dave Fried
If only the state of New York would drop any investigation into the Trump family’s tax evasion, insurance scams, charity scams, Epstein links, and money laundering, then we could all
live in peace.
5
@Dave Fried Get Trump? No. Have him be accountable for his decisions and actions? Yes. If you want Congress to act, how about starting with letting M. McConnel know you want some of the bills which were received from the House of Representatives to be brought to the Senate floor to be voted upon.
6
If you car went missing, it was very likely headed for export. The Feds need access to DMV records to check these vehicles. New York decided to deny access to their records. So the fault lies with New York. This is not some sort of petty retribution, it's a legitimate law enforcement concern.
7
Did you not bother to read the article? If the car being exported was stolen and the New York DMV was aware of it, it would be in the National database of stolen vehicles. Ergo, no need for the feds to access state records. This is simply petty Trumpian politics.
18
@John No, it's not that simple. Its necessary to trace ownership of the vehicle . That data resides in the NY DMV, not the Federal database.
3
"A Cuomo administration official cast doubt on Homeland Security’s justification for the restrictions on vehicle exports, saying Customs and Border Protection could check if cars were stolen using a national database that is updated by the New York Department of Motor Vehicles."
Thus, the information is in a nationally accessible database.
4
Post his tax returns on line. Arrest his family for fraud, or whatever NY is investigating him for. Send the inspectors all over every property with his name on it, and padlock it.
53
So now Trump is into carjacking.... Ah what a dealmaker he is. He, like Don Corleone, likes to make offers people cannot refuse, but when they do, he does not have plan B.
10
Republicans who align themselves with trump (i.e. all of them) should take heed. What if a Democrat in the White House, who ran on a gun control platform, decided to punish states with “open carry” or “stand your ground” laws?
34
DJT proves on a daily basis that he is despicable and is always capable of upping that ante. He never fails to measure down.
14
Definite proof of Federal harassment. CBP has a contract with PIERS and can get all the VIN information without the DMV. They can also can get the VIN list with owner details from Experian, which buys monthly VIN lists of imports and exports from the US from PIERS. Experian Fraud & ID checks those VINs to see if they are stolen. The data is there, this is just an excuse.
85
Trump is holding the auto workers hostage to his own ego. Just when you think he can't go any lower - he does.
16
It seems obvious that this is another case of Trump using government authorities for personal revenge on those who have offended him or simply opposed him in appropriate ways. Another abuse of power directed from the office of the President.
We now need to consider where this pattern might end up. For example, will the President blatantly block federal funds from going to cities and states where the voters did not favor him? (We've already seen hints involving California and New York.) Taking time to consider those possibilities might have seemed preposterous previously, but no longer.
25
@Statboy "will the President blatantly block federal funds from going to cities and states where the voters did not favor him?" It's already happening. Mamaroneck, NY had a grant approved by Congress in 2017 for a badly needed flood mitigation project. Total cost is about $80 million with $50m from the federal government. When Senators Schumer and Gillibrand inquired with the Army Corps of Engineers when would they start the project, they responded that they just received a letter in November 2019 from the Trump Administration notifying them that the grant was being denied because it doesn't meet their (Trump's) cost benefit requirements. Oddly enough the letter was dated Nov. 2018 but received a year later.
This grant was approved by Congress but Trump stepped in and cancelled it.
9
Sounds like "malicious compliance" on the part of the Feds. This country has a history of nodding and winking at Federal law, much of which is passed for political rather than functional purposes, and some of which continues to be downright unconstitutional. But whether they like it or not, states depend on the Federal govt., which is not a list of menu items that they can choose from. It's either all or nothing, so if the a state wants to exclude the Feds from one part of its business, it's liable to find problems popping up elsewhere. NY was happy to have CBP as long as they didn't interfere with its cheap construction labor. Why do you think NY is so keen to retain its illegals? Now that the law is being enforced as written, you can hear the screams from Ohio.
3
A small truth tree:
Given1: Migration is natural
Given2: People move when there is greater opportunity elsewhere.
————————————
1. If it is true that the US and Canada hold, comparatively, a monopoly on wealth and opportunity in the Western Hemisphere, then people will want to migrate to these countries.
2. If that wealth/opportunity were more evenly distributed to the countries people are leaving, they would no longer feel pressure to leave.
3. Given that migration is natural, attempting to stop it without resolving the conditions that create it (1 and 2) is akin to trying to prevent a sink from filling with water when the faucet is on.
Despite these simple realities, the Republican populist mantra has been to attempt just that, to build a giant dam to prevent the flow of people. Any discussion of resolving the factors that create the underlying pressure get met with invective. Brilliant, lets carry on, folks.
12
New York is trying to shield the illegal behavior of some of its residents by blocking access to its database. For that, essentially obstruction of justice, New York should be roundly condemned. New York should be doing its utmost to root out all illegals present in its state for prompt deportation to their homelands.
9
@DRS
New York is doing what you guys always say a state ought to do: asserting its ability to act independently of the Feds, to limit the awesome power of government in Washington.
Either you have been lying every time you say that, or nothing matters to you but getting your way.
9
Trump is on a quest to destroy the New York economy and he is succeeding. And since he doesn't live here anymore he could care less!
He will be the most dishonored President we've ever had in the history of our republic! Plus, today's choice of trump's new (Acting) Director of National Intelligence is so incompetent that our Intelligence services might soon end up as useless vestiges of their old selves! Perhaps our Senators in Washington can just continue to stand there and do NOTHING to save us from trump's antics.
97
@Barry Wolk
I think you mean he could NOT care less.
5
I suggest NY approach Canada and begin the process of having discussions on what it takes to become a Canadian Provence versus a state that is under the influence of a government installed by bible-thumping conservative states that don't believe in evolution, minority rights, science, freedom from religion, rule of law, etc. We can invite the entire Northeast to join NY. New Hampshire might be problematic but I'm sure we can make accommodations to the "Live free or Die" crowd.
31
@FormerRepublican. Easier to accomplish than secession and a concept so simple it can be reduced to a sentence, abolish the Electoral College. Let the American people choose their President. Trump was NOT chosen by majority but by computer technology and money. The Senate is skewed to less populated states, but seems difficult to change that. We also must reverse Citizens United v FEC (see americanpromise.net ). Government has gone out of the intended American peoples' control since that decision in 2010.
9
@FormerRepublican In order to become a Canadian Province one must first learn to spell Province. And if New York did, it would soon find they had little freedom to thumb their nose at the Canadian Federal government.
New York, California, et al should probably start preparing for the possibility of secession, especially if Trump wins a second term. We need people to stand up to Trump and stop his strongman, dictatorial, corrupt government, but nobody's doing it, especially in the Republican party. This has been one of the most horrifying discoveries of recent years; that our so-called leaders are nothing of the sort. They are toadies and scared little rabbits. So this monster has free rein to punish anyone who even mildly disagrees with him. There's already the Cal-Exit movement in California; New York could start it's own movement. Join with Canada. It's not a bad idea.
45
@Joanna Stelling - Can California and New York stop sending federal taxes they collect to DC? After all, if they are being treated as outcasts by the feds, why give them their residents' hard-earned dollars? They could use them at home. Of course, it would really hurt those other states who rely on the money from those two states.
28
This is a terrible idea and is strongly promoted by Russia.
The Yes California organizer lived in Moscow.
Google it.
2
@Fastcat
Excellent idea. Taxes from NY and CA support red states that get more from the gov't than they pay in federal taxes. Too bad it won't happen.
12
I hope the Red States are paying close attention to what can happen when the other Color controls the levers of power.
21
@Expat Canuck
The Red states already have seen what the "other Color" can do to them, which partly explains 2016.
2
@Expat Canuck
Except... that's not the government I want, regardless of color. I hope that, should Democrats prevail in November (and this would have to be primarily when it comes to CONGRESS, please don't forget), work will be done in earnest to course correct from this disaster rather than to engage in more of the same.
2
Yet another example of Trump caring only about Trump, and his authoritarian tendencies being put into practice. It's always "my way or the highway" with this guy, and if it's not his way, he'll destroy you - never mind that these are fellow Americans' businesses and livelihoods that he is destroying.
8
Willful ignorance, intentionally cruel malevolence, and blatant bigotry remain as the policy guidance bases for the "chosen one's" administration. Golding's "Lord of the Flies" has come to life.
15
I'm sure the founders intended the powers of the president to be used as a revenge cudgel against states deemed to be unfriendly to the chief executive.
47
This could all be solved by simply allowing the feds access to the DMV records why are we putting US citizens through all this just to protect people who have broken the law by coming here.
12
Reminds me of the time Obama withheld FEMA funds from Southern states until they supported him on the ACA. Oh, right ...
Just imagine the biblical aneurysm the GOP would have had if that had happened. Just imagine.
45
@sdmco You have substantiated proof of that from a reliable source?
2
@sdmco
If that happened, pls link a reputable NYT or WaPO article documenting it. (JusticeWatch, Fox, etc are propaganda not news.)
We will all wait for you to prove this happened. In the meantime, perhaps the NYT should start fact-checking and reporting on the comments.
2
@JW @BAtR: Please re-read sdmco’s post. I believe the post was intended to be tongue-in-cheek, precisely because President Obama did *not* do those things. Moreover, sdmco says that if Obama had done those things, the GOP would have been apoplectic about it.
18
So here we have an attack on NY for vengeance. Trump has many businesses in NY. I presume he also visits NY. So the city and the state have options such as providing no police or any support for visits. Trump Tower could be found in default of many ordinances and life then could be made unbearable. Trump business activity could be attacked by the city and state in retaliation for the dire economic consequences of the action by Trump.
Maybe it is finally time to play by exactly the same rules! This is a vicious and malicious and cruel person who would not hesitate at all to hurt people.
45
@Richard
" the city and the state have options such as providing no police or any support for visits."
Absolutely right---as a taxpayer I am outraged at the huge expense that is so obvious (and there must be additional security that is hidden) every time the public bus I am on passes the barricaded Trump tower area.
Let's pay to protect ONE property, the White House. Trump and his family can afford to protect the other multiple properties and their own business trips. Instead, they are profiteering by overcharging the Secret Service to protect their many properties all at once
2
Trump has dropped all pretense that his "tariff man" impression and trade war was to benefit the United States economy. It should be apparent that Trump only operates from the "what's in it for me" and "who has angered me or affronted me today" mentality. It is solely about him and what's in it for him. This is an action that attacks a US state and US businesses because he is angry at NY.
He has pulled this with California, and has made other threats along the way, which the press gave short shrift to, not taking him at his word.
When this guy shows you who he is, better believe him. He will go after his perceived "enemies" with a vengeance, in the same manner as he will pardon a criminal because there could be something in it for him - including that the person is an avowed Trump loyalist.
16
It looks like the USA became a dictatorship (not a benign one, either) about four years ago. This sort of regulatory manipulation should be made illegal, and I rather wonder why it has not already been. Everyone who is tempted to re-elect the president should consider if anything was ever decided, done or praised by anyone in his/her state, city, industry ... well, maybe not Church ... to which the president might object.
10
Wouldn’t it be funny if Trump Tower and his other properties were suddenly found to be uninhabitable by the city’s code enforcement division?
59
@VIKTOR I fully expect Trump to direct AG Barr to arrest and detain NYC's entire government if that happens.
When is Trump going to stop meddling in the private sector. And when are Republicans going to tell him to knock it off.
95
@Christy
"When is Trump going to stop meddling in the private sector. And when are Republicans going to tell him to knock it off."
I assume this is a rhetorical question?
8
@Christy Don't hold your breath. Republicans are terrified of being targeted by our president.
12
This is international trade and actually clearly within federal jurisdiction.
1
When a country is "led" by a vindictive authoritarian there is no end to the pain to be suffered by anyone who happens to be simply an innocent bystander.
107
I’m trying to game this out:
Higher value cars will be transferred to neighboring states because the profit margins support this but lower value cars will remain in NY. This will depress the prices for most used cars, making them more cost competitive with new cars. That will contribute to local air pollution but will also negatively impact car and parts manufacturers, mainly in other states.
3
Trump tries to rule the country and the world by threats and sanctions, starting with economic measures and on up to military interventions. Not all of this is unheard of in American diplomacy, but Trump's manner adds insult to injury. The more targets succumb to his pressure, the more he will pile it on.
11
Transfer the auto titles to CT or NJ before undergoing export processing.
16
@DeeCee If the Connecticut DMV had any initiative it would set up a satellite office in Brooklyn to facilitate the transfer and add a processing fee to cover the hassle.
But DMV and initiative ?
I'll stop laughing in a while.
8
New York should raise the appraisals on all the Trump owned properties so that he has to pay more in tax or they can sell them at Tax auction for the amount owed.
110
Mr. Spano quoted saying they are to too small to make a difference should make all 1979s activists shuttled iwith sorrow. Back in the day businesses that were attacked by the cal government would lead rallies that would shut down all ports in New York. Now, I guess we just duck our heat and shucks just walk away. Might be time to bring back that days of revolt.
10
This action could have an unintended result of lowering the auto theft incidents in the Metropolitan area as many stolen vehicles wound up in the Caribbean and West Africa.
5
@Joe Is this, then, and example of Trump 6-D chess?
1
Unbelievable - how is singling out one state on economic policy - legal or possible? If one is harassed - retaliation is illegal. How is this sort of mean-spirited targeting based on nothing other than retaliation legal?
68
@Joe
NY singled itself out by blocking access to DMV records. No other state that gave illegal immigrants access to state driver's licenses blocked access to their DMV records, so no other state is affected by this. If NY stopped trying so hard to be woke and "resistant" it would face fewer self-inflicted problems.
21
@Joe
It isn't legal. But Trump doesn't care, and the Senate won't stop him.
13
@MD
Im sorry MD feels threatened by the promotion of egalitarianism, whatever one calls it.
3
Such a sterling example of how Republicans like to cut unnecessary regulations that stymie small businesses.
Wait, no, not cut. What is the word?... Oh yes, "add." Yes, a sterling example of how Republicans like to ADD unnecessary regulations to stymie small businesses.
All of the non-existent Democrats that Republicans say want to crush small businesses are cheering at this Republican effort, as the real-life students have surpassed the fictional masters.
49
This is the sort of thing the candidates should have been talking about last night. Issues. What 45 is doing and how to restore this country.
He is disenfranchising American Citizens from an entire state based on revenge. Why isn't this the motivating force behind the Dems? First NY, then their state. For whatever reason.
Instead, it was a free-for-all horror show. Same old - same old on health care, and name-calling.
Perez should resign. Debates need to be rethought. Enough of the Coliseum mentality.
126
Relax, two states have voted.
3