What Biden Means for NYC

In most countries, the biggest city is the country's pride and joy. But in America, eh ... not really. Like so much of our schizophrenic national psyche, the biggest city is loathed as much as it is loved by the rest of the country (think when "New  York values" was used as a pejorative some years back). 

Many of our presidents, particularly Republican ones, have often held NYC in contempt. They rarely come here and, when they do, don't stay long. The Obama years was a brief exception (he was here all the time, usually to raise money) but even though the currently defeated President is from NYC, his Republican bone fides has made him hate NYC as much as it hates him.

But he's on his way out, and now President-elect Biden is putting together his plans and administration. Like the soon-to-be ex-President, Biden is also a Northeasterner (in fact, not long ago, the idea of a Northeast liberal Democrat as POTUS would have been unimaginable -- how times have changed). And Biden is also a big fan of public transportation -- he became known as Amtrak Joe since he traveled home to Delaware each night during his decades in the Senate. And Biden is very close to Governor Cuomo -- they're personal friends, and Cuomo was one of Biden's early endorses.

So good things may be on the way to NYC from a President Biden -- namely, money. Money for a new Hudson River tunnel. Money for public housing. Money for the city's government budget shortfalls, the pandemic having wrecked havoc on its finances. Money for a variety of infrastructure projects.

New York City, the nation's biggest city, gives so much, financially and otherwise, to the rest of the country -- and the city is lucky enough finally to have a president who recognizes this.