A group of New York City Council members spent the day meeting with Biden administration officials and members of Congress. It comes at a time when the city is dealing with major federal issues — namely the influx of asylum-seekers from the southern border — and a mayor who has lost political capital in Washington after irking White House insiders over his rhetoric on immigration. Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and four members kicked off the day sitting down with Rep. Gregory Meeks followed by a meeting with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn). The group also met with officials from agencies including the Department of Housing and Urban Development and was set to head to the White House later in the afternoon. “It feels like we should be doing this every year,” one of the members, who was granted anonymity to speak about the trip, said following a lunch with the New York congressional delegation. “I think it’s a good exercise, and I was surprised to hear it was the first time any City Council delegation has come down here.” Local lawmakers hold little sway in federal politics. And the delegation did not appear to meet with any of the Republicans who are in control of Congress and the nation’s purse strings. But Council members typically get more attention with their own delegation. And with that in mind, the member who spoke with POLITICO said the trip was helpful for relationship building — especially for Council members who don’t know House representatives outside their immediate area — and to pitch priorities about a variety of issues including housing, infrastructure and mental health priorities. Federal officials also had some queries. “We covered a lot of issues including asylum seekers, the budget and NYCHA,” the member said. “And it was productive in the sense that they had a lot of questions for us about what is happening on the ground.” And while Council members share a desire with Mayor Eric Adams to have more funding for asylum-seekers, expedited work authorization and a better resettlement strategy, they have also lambasted the city’s response and disagreed about the impact the crisis is having on the budget. Adams has bristled at such criticism of his administration and has suggested anyone who wants to lob tomatoes at City Hall should have to go to Washington to ask for more federal help first. With Tuesday’s trip, the Council has done just that, and it presented their own view of the crisis at a time when Adams appears to be increasingly on the outs with the highest levels of U.S. government. “We’re doing this on our own accord, but there is a recognition that the challenges he is talking about are real and we need to be actively in front of all of our colleagues in government more often,” the member said. | 
