Is Eric Adams' public safety 'synthesis' a winning formula for Democrats?

Many Democrats, publicly and privately, view rising crime as the "single biggest threat to their electoral chances in 2022," Axios reports. But the party may still have an opportunity to make public safety a "winning issue," writes Matthew Yglesias.
"It's right [there] for the taking for them," Yglesias tweeted, adding that while many party members would "rather lose than win as the tough on crime party," they don't necessarily have to market themselves that way. Instead, he thinks Democrats could "own the brand as the party that favors higher rather than lower levels of government spending," noting that the party has delivered local government money "over GOP objections" while "every Trump [administration] budget proposed defunding police."
Business Insider's Josh Barro believes New York City mayoral candidate Eric Adams, who is in the driver's seat as votes from Tuesday's election continue to be tallied, may have created a winning formula for Democrats that was equally misinterpreted by conservatives and those to the left of him. Adams, Barro wrote, campaigned successfully on a "synthesis of more police, more non-police stuff, and more accountability for police," as opposed to a narrower pro-police or anti-police agenda.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Ozempic menus: how weight-loss jabs are changing restaurants
In The Spotlight Reduced appetites mean a shift towards smaller portions
-
Canal-boating trips around the UK
The Week Recommends Britain's tranquil waterways are a great place to unwind
-
The horse racing industry is caught up in the migrant debate
Under the Radar At least 78% of the workers on race tracks are reportedly immigrants
-
Biden diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer
speed read The diagnosis hits close to home, as the former president 'dedicated much of his later career to cancer research'
-
Supreme Court weighs court limits amid birthright ban
speed read President Trump's bid to abolish birthright citizenship has sparked questions among federal judges about blocking administration policies
-
Gabbard fires intelligence chiefs after Venezuela report
speed read Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has fired the top two officials leading the National Intelligence Council
-
Trump vows to lift Syria sanctions
speed read The move would help the new government stabilize the country following years of civil war
-
Senate rejects Trump's Library of Congress takeover
speed read Congress resisted the president's attempts to control 'the legislative branch's premier research body'
-
Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel
speed read Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old soldier, was the final living US citizen held by the militant group
-
White Afrikaners land in US as Trump-declared refugees
speed read An exception was made to Trump's near-total ban on admitting refugees for the white South Africans
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government