Mayor-elect Eric Adams called out political fringe groups across the U.S. during an appearance on Real Time With Bill Maher on Friday, saying they've co-opted civil discourse while urging Americans to "take our country back."
Adams, a Democrat, appeared in studio and alongside former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a Republican, the same day a jury acquitted Kyle Rittenhouse of fatally shooting two men and wounding another during an anti-police demonstration in Wisconsin in August 2020. While Christie supported the verdict on legal grounds and dismissing the case as a societal examination of vigilantism, Adams urged everyday Americans to regain control of the political conversation from extremist groups.
"What I believe that we must take into our own hands, my plea to America: We must take our country back," Adams, a retired NYPD captain and current Brooklyn borough president, said. "We are allowing the fringe elements in both of these conversations to really hijack what everyday Americans want. We want safe cities, educate our children, and to be gainfully employed."
He went on to say that anarchist groups are attempting to "pull our cities apart," citing protests where police vehicles were firebombed.
"You're talking about a group on the left, or on the right, or both?" asked Maher. "Both," Adams replied.
Adams also urged Democrats across the country to focus on the recent wins focused on kitchen table issues, including the infrastructure bill that was recently passed.
"I think what the Democratic Party must do, they must get on the ground and sell what they are doing," he said. "They're doing an amazing job."
This was Adams's first appearance on the long-running HBO program since winning the race against Republican challenger Curtis Sliwa. He had appeared virtually over the summer after winning the Democratic primary, which came on the heels of a video that surfaced showing Adams excoriating democratic socialists during a fundraiser hosted by Republican Councilmember Eric Ulrich.
Despite his centrist views, Adams's emphasized he does not want to fall into any political bucket.
"I don't like the titles that people try to define me. I'm [still] trying to define myself," Adams said. "I just believe it's unfair to Americans because you have different views on different things we want to say, 'here's the litmus test.' And we have to break free of that."
The appearance capped a week of television stops for Adams, which included a segment on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, in which he gave Colbert a fake bag of weed.
