Mayor Bill de Blasio on Sunday denied Amazon got “chased away” from a deal to build a headquarters in New York City — saying the internet retailing giant “couldn’t handle the heat in the kitchen.”
In an interview on NBC News’ “Meet The Press,” de Blasio lamented that “the minute there were criticisms, they walked away.
“They couldn't handle the heat in the kitchen, is what it looks like,” he said. “But they let a lot of working people down in the bargain.”
“Let's be clear: No one [was] chased away,” he added. “This was Amazon's arbitrary decision. We had an agreement. If I made an agreement with you, and there were issues that came up, but we had an agreement, you wouldn't call me in the dead of night and say, ‘Hey, we're taking our marbles, and we're going home.’”
He also said he doesn’t mind the flak he got from fellow progressives about a deal that would’ve given Amazon billions in tax breaks.
“It's a democracy. I have no problem with my fellow progressives critiquing a deal or wanting more from Amazon,” he said, adding: “There was a consensus in New York City. There were some people who stood apart. That's fine. That's democracy. I respect them. But Amazon just took their ball and went home.”
Yet de Blasio took a jab at progressives for not emphasizing “opportunity for working people.”
“We had a chance here to do something very positive for our city and for working people,” he said, adding: “The progressive movement needs to be about equality but also about opportunity for working people.”
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