Knicks owner James Dolans PAC launches snarky billboards taunting Hochul, backing Blakeman

Hochul’s been hit with a moving violation.A James Dolan-bankrolled Super PAC backing Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman launched a $250,000 billboard ad campaign that blames Gov.Kathy Hochul for an exodus out of the Empire State.Strong and Safe New York Inc, which is largely funded by the New York Knicks owner, is targeting drivers in communities near state borders with the snarky message, “You are Now Leaving NY (Like Everyone Else.“Vote Bruce Blakeman,” the ads say, alongside a headshot of Hochul and Blakeman.The ads can be seen by motorists:At least six more billboards will appear soon.The net outflow of New Yorkers to other states has topped the 1 million mark since 2020, while international migration to the city and state has not kept up, according to one analysis.“New York’s population is still down a net 201,269 from the 2020 Census count—the biggest population decline of any state,” EJ McMahon, an adjunct fellow at the Manhattan Institute, said in the City Journal.The pro-Blakeman Super PAC blamed Hochul for New York’s population woes.“Since 2020, over a million New Yorkers have packed up and left the state.

It’s not a coincidence — it’s Kathy Hochul’s New York,” said Strong and Safe New York spokesman Chapin Fay.“Her radical policies on everything from taxes to energy are driving families out the door.New Yorkers see their neighbors leaving every day, but this November, they’re going to fire Hochul and elect Bruce Blakeman.”While the Dolan PAC operates independently, Blakeman took notice and posted a video of cars driving past one of the billboards.“Hundreds of thousands have fled Hochul’s unaffordable New York.

In Nassau, I cut taxes and built the safest county in America instead of driving people out,” said Blakeman, who is now serving as the elected Nassau County executive.“When I am Governor, you won’t have to leave home to afford to live here.”New York State has consistently lost congress...