INTERVIEW: Ras Baraka Addresses Recent Arrest, Newark Airport Issues, Trump Administration + More

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Breakfast Club – Interview with Mayor Ras Baraka

Episode Title: INTERVIEW: Ras Baraka Addresses Recent Arrest, Newark Airport Issues, Trump Administration + More
Release Date: May 20, 2025
Host/Authors: DJ Envy, Just Hilarious, Charlamagne Tha God
Guest: Mayor Ras Baraka, Mayor of Newark, New Jersey

---

1. Introduction

In this episode of The Breakfast Club, hosts DJ Envy, Just Hilarious, and Charlamagne Tha God engage in an in-depth conversation with Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, New Jersey. The discussion centers around Mayor Baraka's recent controversial arrest, ongoing issues at Newark Airport, interactions with the Trump administration, and his campaign for governor.

---

2. Mayor Ras Baraka’s Arrest

Circumstances Leading to the Arrest Mayor Baraka details the events that led to his arrest at Delaney Hall. He recounts daily inspections by his team were denied entry by security, prompting legal action. During a press conference, despite the presence of protesters advocating for his release, he was approached by Homeland Security agents who proceeded to arrest him.

• Quote:
  "They started putting detainees in the building while we were in court, like, just total disrespect."
  (03:09)

Experience During Detention Mayor Baraka describes being taken to an unknown location in Newark, subjected to multiple rounds of fingerprinting and mug shots for a federal trespass charge. He emphasizes the unnecessary and humiliating nature of the treatment he received.

• Quote:
  "They took me to a real lockup somewhere in some place I didn't even know existed."
  (04:25)

Legal and Political Implications He argues that the arrest was a strategic move to undermine his authority and send a message to other officials opposing federal policies. Mayor Baraka suggests that his criticism of the Trump administration may have influenced this aggressive action.

• Quote:
  "I think that's what it was. And when they realized I was there, somebody sent them there to get me."
  (06:10)

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3. Newark Airport Crisis

Current Issues Mayor Baraka addresses the operational challenges at Newark Airport, attributing flight delays and cancellations to insufficient air traffic controllers and outdated infrastructure. He criticizes the Trump administration’s previous cuts to air traffic control staff and inadequate response to the burgeoning airspace demands.

• Quote:
  "Air traffic controllers walked off because of stress. They don't want to be responsible for 90 people, 150 people going down."
  (21:46)

Proposed Solutions He advocates for emergency funding to repair infrastructure and hire additional air traffic controllers. Additionally, Mayor Baraka recommends reducing the number of flights during the interim to ensure safety.

• Quote:
  "We need more air traffic controllers and we need the infrastructure fixed immediately."
  (23:07)

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4. Interaction with the Trump Administration

Critique of Federal Actions Mayor Baraka is critical of the Trump administration’s policies, particularly regarding immigration and infrastructure. He contends that the administration's actions are aimed at destabilizing local governance and disregarding constitutional rights.

• Quote:
  "This tells you clearly that they are committed to this stuff. And the question becomes, how committed are we?"
  (30:07)

Impact on His Political Career Discussing his gubernatorial campaign, Baraka expresses confidence that his arrest will not hinder his bid but instead demonstrate his resilience and commitment to defending citizens' rights.

• Quote:
  "I don't think I'm gonna lose any votes based on what we did."
  (12:36)

---

5. Gubernatorial Campaign and Political Strategy

Campaign Priorities Mayor Baraka outlines his primary objectives if elected governor, emphasizing the need to overhaul the state’s budget by retracting tax breaks given to multinationals and addressing the affordable housing crisis.

• Quote:
  "We need to be building affordable housing across the state of New Jersey. We need to be building 10, 20,000 units of affordable housing in the first two years."
  (19:10)

Challenges in the Primary Race He discusses the competitive Democratic primary, highlighting the high number of undecided voters and the importance of grassroots support over fluctuating poll numbers.

• Quote:
  "The polls are fluctuating every week. They change here and there, which means that it's like a fourth quarter game."
  (20:10)

---

6. Community Support and Reactions

Public and Political Backing Mayor Baraka shares his appreciation for the widespread support from Newark and the broader Tri-State area during his arrest, which bolstered his resolve and highlighted community solidarity.

• Quote:
  "It made me feel good... people not interested in doing nothing extra crazy, you know, they just want justice."
  (15:03)

Call for Collective Action He emphasizes the necessity for collective efforts among elected officials to effectively challenge federal policies, rather than relying on isolated actions.

• Quote:
  "These kind of individual things that are happening is not really enough. We need a collective one."
  (13:15)

---

7. Confronting Opposition

Criticism of Primary Opponents Mayor Baraka criticizes his primary opponent, a congresswoman, accusing her of supporting Trump’s immigration policies and lacking genuine progressive initiatives. He underscores his own alignment with progressive organizations and his commitment to addressing systemic issues affecting Black and Brown communities.

• Quote:
  "Here's a woman who supported the border wall... she is opposed to the Immigrant Trust act in New Jersey."
  (25:00)

Addressing Misconceptions He refutes claims that his arrest was a publicity stunt for his gubernatorial campaign, affirming that the arrest was a response to his efforts to support his congresspeople and uphold constitutional rights.

• Quote:
  "I didn't expect that they would do that. And honestly... when they started threatening, I thought they were bluffing."
  (28:43)

---

8. Personal Reflections and Resilience

Emotional Impact of Arrest Mayor Baraka reflects on the personal fears and uncertainties during his arrest, acknowledging the psychological toll but asserting his unwavering commitment to justice and his responsibilities as mayor.

• Quote:
  "Fear gets in your heart, and you just pray that, you know, fear don't turn you into a coward."
  (30:35)

Commitment to Advocacy He reaffirms his dedication to fighting for due process and constitutional rights, particularly for marginalized communities, highlighting the broader implications of his experiences on national discussions about governance and civil liberties.

---

9. Conclusion

The interview concludes with Mayor Ras Baraka reaffirming his commitment to his political aspirations and his readiness to continue advocating for his community despite the challenges faced. His candid recounting of his arrest and the issues plaguing Newark Airport provide listeners with a comprehensive understanding of his leadership and the obstacles he confronts.

---

Notable Quotes:

• "Nobody's backing down until the throne is earned and nothing will ever be the same."
  – Charlamagne Tha God (00:42)

• "This is the Breakfast Club."
  – Mayor Ras Baraka (31:50)

---

Conclusion

This episode offers a profound look into Mayor Ras Baraka’s experiences and perspectives on critical issues affecting Newark and beyond. His insights into political dynamics, infrastructure challenges, and systemic injustices provide listeners with valuable context on his leadership and the broader socio-political landscape.

Transcript

[DJ Envy]

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[Just Hilarious]

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[Ras Baraka]

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[State Farm Representative]

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[Ras Baraka]

Early in the morning.

[DJ Envy]

The Breakfast Club Morning everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlamagne Tha God we are the Breakfast Club. We got A special guest in the building.

[Interview Host]

Yes, indeed.

[DJ Envy]

We got Mayor Ross Barraco.

[Co-Host]

Welcome. How you feeling, brother?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I'm good. I'm good. A little tired, but I'm good.

[Interview Host]

You ain't. Can't get tired now.

[DJ Envy]

You got a long way to go.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

That's fine.

[Interview Host]

How are you, man?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I'm good, man. Yeah? Yeah. Had a rough couple of weeks, but I'm all right.

[Interview Host]

You care to elaborate on that? Just, like the specific circumstances that led to the arrest at Delaney Hall?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, you know, we've been going down there every day. In fact, my folks are down there now to do the inspections. Uniform Co Construction. You know, you have to get a certificate of occupancy, all these other things. But they came in and just was like, you know, we gonna do what we want to do. Our folks went down there. They wouldn't let them in. I was surprised. So I had them go with y' all. I want to see what's going on. So they basically.

[Co-Host]

So they wouldn't let y' all in there to do the inspections?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah. So they basically was like, no, Geo, this is a private company. This is not the government. Not ice, nobody. Just these guys. And so we took them to court, and we're in a process of inc. Of being in court, and they just start putting detainees in the building while we were in court, like, just total disrespect. So we go down every morning to serve them, like, give them a citation, because we just want to show a pattern that they have been disregarding the local law. When we. When we get in court, the congress people went down there to do a walkthrough, and they called me and was like, yo, be we having a press conference. We want you to be at the press conference. I said, cool. So I came down to the press conference. It was protesters outside, and they out there every day, by the way, saying, let the mayor in. As they were saying when I was at the gate. So the guy lets me in, the guard, he was like, come on this side of the gate. So I did. I stood there about an hour and a half, and then the special agent in charge of Homeland Security came, but ICE was already there. They didn't say anything to me. I was there for, like, an hour. They just looked at me, looking at them. He came, approached me, started talking crazy, reckless. The congress people got in it. He said, you know, he's gonna arrest me. Then the congresswoman was like, no. I said, you know what? I'm leaving. Don't worry about it. He said, yeah, get out So I left. I left and went on the other side of the fence. He got a phone call. They made a decision to leave the inside and come on the outside and arrest me on the city side, you know, and that's basically what happened. They took me to a real lockup somewhere in some place I didn't even know existed. In Newark, by the way.

[Guest/Interviewer]

Wow.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

In a cell, took pictures, fingerprints, charged me with federal trespass, went to a hearing, all the whole thing, you know, Fingerprinted me again.

[Interview Host]

I heard that. I heard you were subjected to like a second round of fingerprinting and mug shots.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, it's crazy.

[State Farm Representative]

Why?

[Interview Host]

How do you interpret that?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I have no idea, man. They was like, one agency has it, not the other agency. I was like, can't y' all get it from them? Like, it's technology. I mean, they did this in the middle of the court. Like, we were leaving. The marshals came into the courtroom to escort me out, and my lawyers started, you know, going back and forth with them, and I just said, you know what, forget it. Just take me wherever y' all gotta. Wherever y' all going. I'm going, let's go. And I left.

[Guest/Interviewer]

They took you to a place you didn't even know existed the first time?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Guest/Interviewer]

Wow.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Like some nondescript, factory looking place. Took me down in the basement. Is a Brit is like real cells in there?

[Interview Host]

What?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, yeah, it's great.

[Interview Host]

You didn't know it was there?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

No, not at all. Nope. It's a Homeland Security spot that they have there. Wow.

[Guest/Interviewer]

Did you see other people detained there as well?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

No, I didn't see anybody. They had me, you know, off somewhere, you know, so I didn't know what was going on down.

[Interview Host]

So this building, any of your criticism with Trump, you think any of your criticism of Trump caused him to act like that?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, I just believe that they wanted to get the mayor of the city. You know, they own this. I'm gonna arrest judges, mayors, whoever's, like, they're in charge. You just want to show that we have power and authority and you're not going to defy us. And we gonna get whoever it is. You can get it too, type of thing, Right. So I think that's what it was. And when they realized I was there, somebody sent them there to get me, you know, so that's basically what happened. I don't even think it's directly about me. I think it's about them and them trying to prove to everybody that they're untouchable. And they basically do what they want to do. When they realized it was me, they sent a special agent in charge of the Homeland Security investigation of that region to come get me. That's like the police director going downtown and arrested somebody for shoplifting, you know, so doesn't usually happen. Yeah, he comes by itself and does that.

[DJ Envy]

So legality, Right?

[Co-Host]

So this is a private building that law enforcement should be able to come in and see what's going on.

[DJ Envy]

So how do they have the right.

[Co-Host]

To stop y' all from going in?

[DJ Envy]

So shouldn't in any other.

[Co-Host]

Like, if I have a private building and I say y' all can't come in, y' all gonna kick the door down for sure. But this case, y' all can't.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, and like, the fire inspectors and the health inspectors have more rights than police officers. Like, police officers need, like, a warrant to do specific things. The health inspector and the fire inspector can come in any building for safety, health and human resources or whatever it is. They could come into the building and say, look, this building is not safe. It's not fit, so forth and so on. And they won't let them in. And that's why I was totally shocked. Like, this can't be real. I need to go see this myself. And it was right. They just wouldn't let. They wouldn't let anybody in.

[DJ Envy]

So what's inside this building? Has anybody seen what they're doing in this building?

[Co-Host]

And nobody knows.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I mean, CBS was a granite entry, and they gave him like, a limited tour. And they keep saying it's like these criminals in their murderers, rapists, you know, the. The Republican talking point. But nobody know who's in there. You don't know what's going on, who they are, where they come from. We don't know anything. And, you know, the building was used as a halfway house and drug rehab 20 years ago. To change the use of the building, now you're going to change it to a place for. With detainees. You have to get that. You checked, right? It has to be. You have to get a certificate occupancy, you have to apply for that. You have to get inspections. You may have to go to the planning board, zone and board, it depends. But you have to start that process. That's. Anybody has to do that. It's not special. It's not like putting undue circumstances on these people. This is what everybody goes through.

[Interview Host]

I saw you say that you feel like these measures were an attempt to humiliate and degrade you.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Absolutely. Once, you know, they. They cuffed me, threw Me in a car. You know, the security that were the police there was pretty decent. But, you know, taking me through that process, they put me in a cell. You know, the whole fingerprint and the interrogation piece, the, you know, then doing it again, I just don't think it's necessary. I mean, the U.S. attorney came to my hearing. It's a classy misdemeanor, $400 fine.

[State Farm Representative]

Wow.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

You know, maximum 30 days in jail. She's. She's at the hearing, the U.S. attorney. I'm like, what. What's happening here? You know, this is.

[Co-Host]

So they're trying to give you the maximum, obviously, 30 days in prison. And for an.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, I mean, this is probably what they're going after. But they don't have. No, I don't think they have a case at all. I mean, first of all, it's not federal property, so Federal trust. There's not even one federal employee that works there. Like, all they do is all. They don't have a lease. They have a contract for them to house a few of their prisoners. That's it. It's not. This has nothing to do with the federal government at all. This is a private property with a private owner from Florida called the Geo Group, which owns hundreds of prisons, by the way. It has nothing to do with the federal government. If anything, if it was trespassing, they would have to call the local police. Right. And if they thought it was a conflict of interest, they should have called the state police. But they didn't call anybody, by the way, because they let me in the property.

[Interview Host]

Wow.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah. The people who called, what was ICE agents and everybody else who called their bosses and boss came down there and did what he did and he got orders to do that.

[Interview Host]

Have you gotten any like. Like messages, like, behind the scenes on some, like, all right, don't step out of line again. It can get worse or something. You know what I mean?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Pretty much. I mean, you know, we're in the process. In the process of trying to figure out the charges and, and that, you know, and these people are, you know, they serious now. They committed today foolishness. You know, I mean, they threatening to arrest the congresswoman who was there and multiple congresswomen. You know, they're threatened to take us through this all the way to the end. But, you know, at the end of the day, like, we didn't do anything wrong. So, I mean, if they want to waste the taxpayers money, the government's money to go through this, then let's go through it. We think we are correct And I don't think they have any ground to stand on.

[Interview Host]

What do you say to people who say they don't care about fighting for the rights of immigrants?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

They're just misinformed. And because we've allowed other people to kind of dictate or, or control the narrative, honestly, what we're fighting for is the due process for the 14th amendment, the 4th and 5th amendment, to be securing your person, your papers, your property. People can't do anything to you, pull you over, throw you in jail without due process, without you going to court, without them having a warrant, all these specific things. And I think more than anybody, black people should be concerned about that because we are the. The number one victims of being searched without probable cause or people coming to our property, our persons disregarding our constitutional rights. The first. The. The Bill of Rights, the disregard for that. We should be the first ones concerned about it. And so we should stand up for people who's getting theirs violated because we. Next.

[Guest/Interviewer]

And I see that you also run for governor as well. Do you feel like this is a part of the plan to mess that up, too?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, I mean, I think it's the part of the plan to mess everything up, you know, so I think they. What they meant for evil, though, always turns to good. I mean, these people, they're not thinking about what they're doing. They're just reacting. Right. The person in charge of Homeland security. Well, the second in charge gets on tv, starts saying, we stormed a place. It was a bus of migrants going in there. You know, we slammed ICE agents like all this was fabrication. Now they just put themselves in a. In a. In a bad situation. Because now you're saying things that are not true because we have the videos. So I just start dropping the videos so people could see that I waltzed in there with my hands in my pocket, you know, very calm, you know, because the guy opened the gate and let us in. There was no kicking, no shoving, no pushing. I mean, they used to lying and controlling the narrative, but this is a time they made a very grave mistake.

[Interview Host]

Do you think that this will impact your bid for governor in any way?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Help. I don't think so. I mean, people who don't like what happened don't like what happened anyway. They don't like. They wouldn't vote for me anyway. So I don't think I'm gonna lose any votes based on what we did. I think what it does do, though, is it tells people that we willing to go all the way, that, you know, we're not just talking about defending people's rights, that we. We're going to challenge these people at every turn.

[Interview Host]

I do. I do wonder what message do you think your arrest sends to other elected officials who might oppose these federal policies, who just oppose the Trump administration, period?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, I think these guys need to ratchet it up a little bit. Need to figure out what we're going to do in a collective way. These kind of individual things that are happening is not really enough. We need, like, collective energy here, a cooperative plan of action to push back against what's happening. Not. Not all these separate states doing these suits. We should do a collective one. The irony is, when I was going to court, the state of New Jersey was going to court with Donald Trump. That same day, our AG filed a suit against this, his signing of executive order undermining the 14th amendment of birthright citizenship. On that day, he was in court. But it should have been Donald Trump versus New Jersey against Baltimore, against Maryland, against, you know, California, against Maine. It should be. It should have been like 15 different states together. And I think we need collective action. This individual stuff is not working.

[Interview Host]

You know, I've heard, you know, Mayor Adam say this, and I've heard a lot of other people say this to me, like, there's an attack on black mayors. Do you think so?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, I think. I think black mayors have it a little bit more difficult than everybody else, obviously, just like black people do. Obviously, people expect more from you. You're gonna be scrutinized more. They think you have a magic wand. And because you black, you're gonna make all of the black people's problems disappear in five seconds. Obviously, that's not gonna happen, but, I mean, ultimately, I think we have a harder road to tow, a heavier, a bolder to move. But, you know, it is what it is. This is what you signed up for. You know, we knew this when we got into it, like this was what it was gonna be.

[Interview Host]

How did it feel for you when you just saw, you know, the city of Newark, like, really come to your defense? Like, they was outside, like people was pulling out. Not even just Newark. People was pulling up from all over the Tri State.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah.

[Interview Host]

You know, to ride for you. How did you feel when you came out and saw that?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

It made me feel good. The irony is when I was in there, you know, the guy locked me up after the judge said you could go. Took an extra 30, 40 minutes to let me out because he was trying to devise a plan to get me outside because there was so many people out there. He was like, oh, we got to get these people from the front of the building. I said, you know how you get them out? Let me get me out, let me out, they'll go. He said, I wish it was that easy. I said, is that it? Actually is that easy. As soon as I walk out of here, they're going to walk away. And lo and behold, I walked out. We walked down the street, talked to them, and everybody dispersed. I mean, people not interested in doing nothing extra crazy, you know, they just want justice. And that's simply what it is.

[Co-Host]

Now you're running for governor, what's the first thing you want to do when you become governor?

[Charlamagne Tha God]

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[Co-Host]

First thing on your, on your mind, the first thing you wanna do first day, second day, third day.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, I mean number one, I think we need to fix this budget. Our budget is, you know, is out of whack because we have given so many tax breaks to these multinationals and we need to bring that money back and fix our tax code. But, but ultimately we need to be building affordable housing across the state of New Jersey. We need to be building 10, 20,000 units of affordable housing in the first two years. One it'll reduce people's costs, reduce rents, mortgage. So I would put a rent control on all rent across the state of New Jersey for the first couple of years until we get the first units of housing built in the state. That needs to happen to begin stabilizing our economy and it'll make people believe we mean business, right? Put thousands of people to work. So dealing with this affordable housing crisis is like number one on my list now.

[Co-Host]

There's a lot of people in this race for governor. Now, how do you step above all those people? Because right now, looking at polls and polls mean a lot of nothing a lot of times, but how do you make sure you're ahead of those polls to make sure people come out and support you and that you're really taking this serious?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, well, I mean, the polls are fluctuating every week. They change here and there, which means that it's like a fourth quarter game. It's gonna be whoever gets there put people out to the polls to vote and. And whoever wants it battered and more than anybody else is the person I think is going to get over the line. But ultimately, I think people could see my record. And we've been putting that out there, the things that we've done in the city of Newark. And we believe that if you could do it in Newark, you could basically do it anywhere. I'll probably. If the state has a cold, Newark has the flu. Right. So our problems are a lot more intractable and difficult, and our ability to mitigate those issues makes us uniquely qualified to deal with the issues around the state.

[Interview Host]

I saw something. It was an Emerson College poll, and it said that 56% of voters were undecided about who they wanted to vote for in the Democratic primary.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, I don't think it's that big. Yeah, Emerson, they did a text poll. Those text polls are incredibly unreliable. They texting people and, you know, they text in a small portion of people, but there is a huge undecided number, but it's not 56%. And you always have to understand. And I know, we know when they polling people, it's not really us or because we're not answering the phone. So we, We. We have to be a little weary of those polls, a little leery of them, and really just get on the ground and keep working. I mean, the poll said that Kamala Harris was going to win, right? Yeah, the poll said she was going to win New Jersey by double digits, and she only won by 5 percentage points.

[Interview Host]

Newark Airport, man. What the hell is going on? Mayor Baraka, like, what is the problem with Newark Airport? How did they get here to where people are saying it's unsafe to fly out of Newark Airport?

[Co-Host]

They say don't fly out of Newark Airport.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I don't think it's unsafe. I don't think it's unsafe because they keep delaying and canceling flights. If they weren't doing that, then it would be unsafe. The reality is there's too many planes in the airspace, air traffic controllers is not enough. Our air traffic controllers walked off because of stress. They don't want to, when they lose in contact with airplanes, they don't want to be the one are responsible for 90 people, 150 people going down. So they walking away. The radar system in that area doesn't work. The infrastructure is broke. So. But the Trump administration came in, got rid of 400 people, blame Di, and now they realize it's a real problem and none of that is going to help it. So now they're trying to put money in infrastructure and hire more air traffic controllers, but they need to do that like rapidly, like an emergency. And in the meantime, we just need to slow those flights down. We need to do the same kind of patterns that's happened out of LaGuardia. See, LaGuardia is in the same airspace, but not having this problem. They're not having this problem because they have less flights and they have more time between flights. Right. The flights coming in, the flights going, there's more space between those. Newark just, we, we just fly places, flying in and out, in and out, in and out. We acting like there is no problem. Right, but there is a problem. And so as we, as we act like there's no problem, they're canceling flights and, and delaying flights and ultimately this need to not have those flights until they get this in order.

[Interview Host]

So you said people are, they, they were walking off. Why? Because they just were stressed out.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Yeah, they, they, they.

[Interview Host]

What were they stressed out about?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Like, I mean, to not have contact with an airplane for 30 seconds, for 60 seconds, for 90 seconds is a lot. I mean, if you're an air traffic controller and you can't control what's going on and somebody crashes and dies on your watch, I mean, obviously that's going to cause a bit of stress.

[Interview Host]

Absolutely.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Folks walked off and, and Newark is unfortunately add insult to injury. They're, you know, fixing one of the runways at the same time. So that should be done prayerfully by the end of June. But we need more air traffic controllers and we need the infrastructure fixed immediately. We need emergency spending, emergency funding to get that stuff done like yesterday.

[Interview Host]

But nobody knew that about the infrastructure before.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Of course they did. They knew, they knew that the infrastructure was old. They also knew that we didn't have enough air traffic controllers, not just Newark, but period. Right. And that's why we were having incidents then when the Trump administration first came in, you seen all these airline issues that were going on, which signaled that there was a problem and Instead of dealing with the problem, they began blaming DEI and continue to lay people off instead of hiring people, fixing the infrastructure so we won't have this emergency situation where we are now. So they finally, they've understood that this is a real problem. So now they're trying to address it, but it's not happening fast enough. But in the meantime, I would say they need to stop some of these planes from going off the ground. Yeah, you're gonna be inconvenienced cuz you can't get as many flights as you could have got before. But safety is more important than anything else, I would say.

[Co-Host]

Now, I wanted to ask about the congresswoman that is also going against you in this race. They said that she has supported a lot of the things that Donald Trump has put to the table and you've been very vocal about that. What are your thoughts on some of the things that she's trying to follow up with and that she's campaigning for?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, you know, everybody in the primary now is progressive, right? But all of the progressive leaning organizations endorse my candidacy. All of the progressive unions, all of the progressive organizations for People's Organization, Progress, 32 BJ, Working Families. Because I'm a real progressive, I'm not just playing one on tv. The reality is here's a woman who supported the border wall, right? Who, you know, supported $4 billion that go towards Trump's border wall, right. A person that voted against immigrants and while she was the congressperson, right. Who is opposed to Immigrant Trust act in New Jersey, who that says that we have to not ask people their status, that our police can't cooperate with ice, that we have to make sure immigrants get the same services, that as any other people or residents of the state of New Jersey, she voted, she is opposed to that and voted against things when she was the governor, I mean, excuse me, when she was the congressperson. So the reality is I don't think that she's progressive at all.

[Co-Host]

Now, you went to her hometown of Montclair to make that statement, to make sure that the residents of Montclair know who they're voting for. Why was that important to you?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Well, I went there to really talk about the fact that they have a plan for everything but black people, right? They, that, you know, the reality is they come up with all of these strategies and plans that they're so thoughtful about, but none of it involves us. But they keep coming in our community asking us for things, but they have no plan to help us. When we were on a panel they asked her about the wealth gap and she started talking about third graders reading level. And so I got upset, right? I said something on a panel and I said something in Montclair, I said, you know, reading levels, we need to make sure that our kids can read on grade level. But don't get confused that the wealth gap has nothing to do with reading. And as a, as a, as a matter of fact, income and wealth are two different things. Income, you could say that, you know, if you have a better education, you could get a better job and your income could be better. But wealth, you could be dumb as a doornail and have wealth. Your parents can pass down businesses and real estate and all the thing to you and you can mess it up, but you still have wealth, right? You know, Donald Trump has wealth not because he's brilliant, but because his family had wealth. I mean, this country has denied us wealth since we came here. Like slave slaves helped to develop wealth for other people who've passed their wealth down. And because she don't understand that and she talks about it like in a tone deaf way, it kind of undermines our ability to destroy a wealth gap that's actually doubling in the state of New Jersey right now. And it went from $300,000 to $600,000 because of the lack of home ownership and business development in our state. And she, and if you're gonna be the governor, you should know that, right?

[Co-Host]

So she's actually supposed to be coming up here, I think, this week and next week. What's one question that you would think is the most important question that she should answer?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

That what's her plan for black and brown people? But more importantly, black women, right? Black women are the most committed and dedicated constituent that the Democratic Party has. And they're treated the worst in New Jersey or in this country. I mean, she's endorsed by the mainstream Democratic Party, but they have no plan for black people. They never did. They have no plan for Latinos, they never did. And they have no plan for working people. I mean, the Democratic Party is in charge of the state and working people are struggling the most. We can't pay our bills, our childcare is too high. Right. Insurance is too high. In fact, if you got the wrong credit score, you might not get no insurance. Right? Your rent is too high, your mortgage is too high, and we still give it tax breaks to billionaires in New Jersey and can't take care of working people. And you're supposed to be the party of working families, right? She should have an answer for Those.

[Interview Host]

Things is running for governor hard when you still gotta govern as mayor. And the reason I brought that up is because everybody, well, not everybody, but there were people saying that this was a publicity stunt when you got arrested. Like you're just trying to drum up, you know, attention for your, your campaign for governor. What do you say?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I got a lot of ways to drum up attention. According to jail ain't one of them, you know. Yeah, but, but, but, but ultimately, like, look, I just came from the gym that day, you know, I was going to get a, a shake to go back to the office. My policy advisor reminded me that they were having a press conference. I went down there for that press conference to support my congress people. Right. I didn't expect that they would do that. And honestly, you know, when they started threatening, I thought they was bluffing. Like when I left the property, if I wanted to get arrested, I would have stayed on the property. I actually left. Right. And 20 years ago, I would have took flight. You know, when they say they come and arrest you, I would have been fences, cars, everything. You know, the reality of the matter is nowhere for me to go. Like, if they're gonna arrest you, wherever I'm gonna go, they're gonna come, like, so if you're gonna do it, just do it now. And that's really what my sentiment was like. I don't believe you. You got it in you that this is not gonna happen. This can't happen. This is. When a congressman told me they come in the rescue, I said, why? What did I do? I didn't do anything. That's exactly what my response was. What did I do? I was like, oh, come arrest me. I was like, I didn't do anything. How would you, how are you going to arrest me? I'm not even on your property anymore. And they came out and did it anyway.

[Interview Host]

Did that confirm to you what type of political climate we're in?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

Oh, absolutely, absolutely. Very, very dangerous. The fact they still going through this, that my lawyers are still going back and forth with these people, it's still, it tells you clearly that they are committed to this stuff. And the question becomes, how committed are we? And I don't believe we are as committed as we need to be to turn this thing over.

[Guest/Interviewer]

At any point, were you like afraid for your life, the fact that you were taken to a off site factory.

[Interview Host]

You ain't never seen before?

[Guest/Interviewer]

Yeah, like, absolutely.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

I mean, I mean, I guess when you. I'm a grown man now with family, so when you get arrested, all kind of things going through your head. Who picked my children up from school? Like, I got a meeting tonight, you know, all kind of stuff. And you was hungry? Did I leave my house door open? All kind of stuff is going through your head, like, you know, really fast and then. And. And they taking you somewhere. You don't know. Like, you can hear them talking. Yeah, they follow me. They came, one of the detail, got in a separate car and drove behind them and got. And went to where I was going. But ultimately, like, you don't know where they taking. Am I going to the county jail? Am I going to Bergen County? Essex County? What's going on? And where they going to put me at when I get in the county jail. I mean, that's the things I was thinking about right then when I got to the place, I'm like, what is this place? I mean, what are they going to do? Do anybody know I'm here? Right. And all of those things are going through your head. So, yeah, I mean, fear gets in your. In your heart, and you just pray that, you know, fear don't turn you into a coward.

[Co-Host]

There you go. Well, we appreciate you for joining us, and I'm sure, you know, you'll be back up here before the race actually happens.

[DJ Envy]

What date is that?

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

June 10th. That's right.

[Co-Host]

Well, ladies and gentlemen, Mayor Ras Baraka. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning.

[Ras Baraka]

Wake that ass up early in the morning.

[Mayor Ras Baraka]

The Breakfast Club.

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[Mayor Ras Baraka]

You're listening to an iHeart podcast.