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After Zohran Mamdani's shock win in last summer's mayoral primary, the buzzword on the lips of all Democrats looking for an edge in the world of Trump 2.0 became "affordability." From the leaders of Congress on down, many Democrats began sharing all of the ways they were seeking to put money back in people's pockets, hoping to seize on the momentum of Mamdani—without directly engaging with most of his leftist politics.
For Governor Kathy Hochul, that meant putting an emphasis on lowering costs for New Yorkers in this year's state budget. Did that mean she'd introduce a massive buildout of cheap renewable energy to help curb skyrocketing energy bills? No. Another gimmicky round of "inflation rebate checks"? Also no. A progressive taxation plan that would allow New Yorkers to have truly universal child care? Also, no.