Longtime Democratic donor joins NYC mayoral race, vows to upend 'radical left' agenda

"I'm alarmed at what's happened in our party and especially in our city, where we've had one party rule [from] what I call the radical left. I'm a sensible, centrist leftist, sort of in the model of a great mayor, Mike Bloomberg," he said.

If elected, Tilson's priorities would involve cutting crime by half, addressing the cost-of-living crisis, improving public schools, fixing spending by eliminating corruption and prioritizing citizens and legal residents in the allocation of city resources.

The migrant crisis has taken center stage in the Big Apple, with hotels across the city housing illegal migrants and creating a financial strain on local residents.

The city has forked out $6.4 billion to cover the more than 200,000 migrants who have flooded the city since 2022, numbers from the mayor's office show.

Such strains - and concerns over migrant crime - have fueled discussions about sanctuary cities nationwide. Co-host Lawrence Jones asked Tilson if he believes New York City should remain a sanctuary for illegal immigrants.

"The devil's in the details," he responded. 

"That's Exhibit A of the kind of radical left views that have taken hold in New York that need to be rolled back to sensible, centrist views."

Mayor Adams is facing a crowded and competitive Democratic primary in 2025, with challenges from former Obama aide Michael Blake, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander and former city Comptroller Scott Stringer.