Audio & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Is a Guest on CBS 2’s “The Point”

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul was a guest on CBS 2's "The Point" with Marcia Kramer.

AUDIO: The Governor's interview is available in audio form here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's interview is available below:

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2:  Governor Kathy Hochul wants to be the "Affordability Governor," a tough road to follow when everything seems to be getting more expensive, but she's up to the task. But before we talk about affordability, I'd like to talk to you about what seems to be rampant Islamophobia. Specifically, I'm going to talk to you about a tweet by Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama on Thursday night where he basically had a picture of Zohran Mamdani on a prayer rug next to the attack on the World Trade Center towers saying, "The enemies are in the gate." How do you feel about that and the fact that he's now trying to make the Mayor of the City of New York a target for Islamophobia?

Governor Hochul: People like that should not be in public life. In fact, they are the lowest of the low. I reject any kind of notion that it's okay in public discourse or even in your own house to, not just harbor that hate, but to share it with others and to be part of a problem that we're trying to deal with. The rise in Islamophobia and antisemitism is off the charts, and then you have an elected official - who should know better - using their platform to, in a despicable way, criticize the religious beliefs of our Mayor. So I think these are disgusting human beings and I would like their voters to actually look at who they're sending to office and wonder, "Is that who represents our values as human beings and as Americans?" So I'm sickened by what I've seen out there.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2:  I wonder if this makes it more difficult for you as Governor to deal with the combined programs, problems of Islamophobia and antisemitism, which the hate crimes are really on the rise in New York and it can't be helpful to you.

Governor Hochul: No. I had to work hard to have hate crimes bail eligible so we can treat them more seriously. They weren't being even treated seriously until I changed the law, got the Legislature to change a few years ago. I've had to invest upwards of $135 million to protect synagogues, yeshivas, and mosques and other places that are targets. I have over 1,000 members of my National Guard around the city now to help NYPD protect these places.

You saw what happened with the synagogue in Michigan yesterday, so it's all festering this climate of hatred that has no place in a state like New York. This is repugnant to our values, and yes, it's hard, but I believe - and I was in an interfaith meeting yesterday with members of the Muslim community and leaders in the Jewish community together in my office saying, "An attack on one is an attack on all of us." So if religious communities stand together, regardless of the origins or the faith and say, "We don't do that to each other. We don't do that. We have to have more respect for your right to worship the God you choose, and to send your children where you want them to be educated." And I know we can get to that place, but we have to stand up from our positions as public leaders and condemn it forcefully.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: Do you think that the war in Iran is exacerbating what's going on and also is it making it more difficult for you to deal with these joint problems?

Governor Hochul: Yes, it is. Yes, it is - both problems. One is, apparently the attacker in Michigan - I just communicated with my friend, Gretchen Whitmer, the Governor there - was supposedly inspired because he had brothers that were killed in the war. They're members of Hezbollah, which is a terrorist organization that we are concerned about even in North America here, I will say that. I get intelligence briefings all the time and we're deeply concerned about individuals who are here trying to do harm to all of us.

So, it is making it difficult because that has heated up the passions around this, and also on the affordability challenges. Gasoline prices are through the roof, and even if you don't own a car, you're paying for the higher cost of goods being transported to your grocery store. There's a ripple effect of everything and none of it is good.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: I do want to talk to you about affordability, and I do want to talk to you about gas and utility prices. Specifically, let's start with the gas prices since you raised it. Do you think there should be some kind of a gas moratorium, a gas holiday? I took a look at the taxes - apparently 48 cents of every gallon in New York are taxes. Is there any way you would consider some kind of a gas holiday to get us through the high prices?

Governor Hochul: I think you'll see most of the taxes are at the federal level. Since this was initiated by our federal government, I think they have a responsibility to suspend all the excise taxes on gasoline and federal taxes across the board, yes. Find a way to give some relief at the pump because it is having a devastating effect on people's pocketbooks already.

New Yorkers and all Americans are struggling with high cost of child care and car insurance and electric bills and utility bills, and now to have something that was at least in the $2-to-low-$3 range shooting upwards, and as they save on gasoline prices, they shoot up with it like a rocket, but they come down like a feather. So we're not going to see, even if the war ends tomorrow, we'll still be paying higher prices at the pump. And again, families are struggling enough, they didn't need this one.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: So when you have your conversations with President Trump, would you be raising this as an issue?

Governor Hochul: I'd be happy to. We talk about keeping his hands off of the Gateway Tunnel, fund the program that is keeping thousands of people at work in our city, it's a critically important part of our infrastructure. I have a lot of conversations about keeping his hands off of, not having a surge in ICE raids in our city, so I'll just add that to my list.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: So also I want to talk to you about utility rates. The Assembly has proposed a two-year moratorium or freeze on utility rates statewide. Is that something that you think is doable in this budget?

Governor Hochul: No, I want to find ways that we can get our arms around something that is so difficult for New Yorkers and we have a ratepayer protection plan in place. We have my all-of-the-above approach to find more sources of energy to help drive down the cost, although they're affected by global supply chains.

I will be happy to have conversations with the Assembly and Legislature overall about what we can do collectively to reduce costs.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: They're also talking about a rebate, an energy rebate, up to $500 depending on how much you earn. How do you feel about that?

Governor Hochul: I'm having conversations on everything. There's nothing I won't consider - at least see whether it's feasible, whether we can do that. But at the same time, we're also asking utilities to make major investments in transitioning to clean energy sources, so that's an additional cost that they're absorbing so we have to figure it out. But we're also looking at compensation for executives, and the relationship of that and our rates that we're paying. So there's a lot to be looked at, but it is on my list as one of my priorities to try and figure out a way to just take the pressure off New York families.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: You know what? When you raise, you talk about the compensation that executives are getting, do you think they're getting too high a rate?

Governor Hochul: I want to see what the relationship of that compensation is, how that's going up in relation to utility bills going up and what we can do about it, so I've got a bill in my budget to address that.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: So the other question I have is this - you talk about finding alternate types of power. I know that Mike Lawler had a big press conference this past week saying you should reopen Indian Point. I wonder how you feel about that, and if you think that maybe that was a mistake of your predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, to close it down when we were gonna need the power.

Governor Hochul: I think the mistake was not having a plan be in place. I understand there was anxiety in the community about the proximity of this power plant; although, it had worked successfully and safely for decades, but okay, there's momentum among the public that there's concern about its closeness to New York City if anything should happen. But before that ever should have happened, we should have made sure that there are alternative energy sources in place. So what happened was we lost 25 percent of the power that were used to power the businesses and homes of New York City. And what has resulted is, to replace that we're now having more diesel trucks on the roads, transporting liquified natural gas and home heating oil, which is driving up our emissions Downstate. Emissions Upstate are much lower because we have more hydroelectric power and nuclear. Mike Lawler can say that, but also he should get on board with my approach to build more nuclear facilities Upstate, where they're welcome not to go where they're unwelcome.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: So you wouldn't say reopening Indian Power is -

Governor Hochul: I don't think it's possible at this point, I really don't. But I also think I'm already on - I've been working for now a couple of years on having nuclear facilities up in areas where they want them, where we already have nuclear.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: But if you could bring nuclear power Upstate, can you bring that nuclear power Downstate so that you can help New York City, which lost 25 percent from Indian Point?

Governor Hochul: Well I'm - I'll tell you what I'm doing with your Downstate. Next year you're going to see the benefit of a hydroelectric plan I launched in my first months in office -

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: I recall

Governor Hochul: With Hydro-Quebec, bringing it down the Hudson River, and that's going to help power New York City, as well as my efforts with offshore wind, if Donald Trump would stop shutting it down. It's maddening. I've got a plan to transition to renewable energy and they eliminate the tax benefits for wind and solar, and then they kill a project that's just about to power about a half a million homes in Brooklyn. So I'm trying my best, but then you get these other forces that conspire against us, but I'll keep fighting.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: We only have about 30 seconds left, but I have a quick question that might help drivers. What about tax free, toll free Friday for drivers who don't have to, who don't have to pay tolls to help them with their gas prices?

Governor Hochul: I'm up with all ideas, I really am, but the way I can help drivers is to reduce the high cost of insurance. If everyone gets on board with my insurance reform package, I can drive down insurance costs by 10 or 20 percent.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: Were you upset that it wasn't in either House Budget?

Governor Hochul: There's a lot of time to negotiate it back in.

Marcia Kramer, CBS 2: Okay, we're going to have to leave it right there for now.

Contact the Governor's Press Office