New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued a statement that seemed to defend the US Marine who put a vicious career criminal in a chokehold which led to his death, and MSNBC commentator Chris Hayes took issue with it.
On the New York City subway, Jordan Neely, a homeless Black man who has been arrested 44 times for offenses including attempting to kidnap a little child, was yelling at and threatening other riders.
The radical left has taken advantage of the situation, arguing that this incident amounts to the murder of a homeless, Black man who was mentally ill.
In a statement she released after the incident, Hochul seemed to support the former Marine, citing the homelessness crisis and stressing that there are “consequences for behavior.”
WHAT IS GOING ON YOU PEOPLE SOUND LIKE MONSTERS MY GOD https://t.co/FZW9lT4jUs— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) May 4, 2023
However, it seems that this incident has divided the left into two groups: those who recognize that numerous witnesses supported the former Marine’s claim that Neely posed a threat and that he was merely attempting to subdue him, and those who believe that everyone involved should have let the homeless man continue screaming threats.
Hayes was a part of the latter group and tweeted in all caps that Hochul and anybody else who agreed with her sounded like monsters.
Hochul, meanwhile, attempted to take a neutral stance in this matter. The Democratic governor told reporters that the chokehold was an “extreme response” and that Neely’s “family deserves justice,” even though she did mention that there are “consequences for behavior.”
In response to the news, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a leftist representative from New York, claimed that Neely was “murdered.”
She argued that Neely’s violent past was motivated by hunger, and the city’s rising rents and cuts to social services had left many people desperate and vulnerable, allowing violent criminals to go without food and shelter.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams also released a statement expressing condolences for Neely’s death but refrained from commenting further until the investigation was complete.
When asked about Ocasio-Cortez’s comments, Adams rebuked her for interfering with the investigation and stated that he would allow law enforcement officials to do their job and determine what happened.
