Good Morning, New York! Today is Thursday, December 5th. The manhunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s assassin has new evidence, the City Council votes on ‘City of Yes,’ and there are new developments in the mayoral race.

WHERE’S ERIC: Nothing currently on public schedule.

WHERE’S KATHY: In NYC to deliver remarks to the New York Building Congress Annual Gala.

TIPS? Email me: [email protected]

Front Pages

Hall Monitors

— The City Council’s ‘City of Yes’ housing plan to add 80,000 new homes is expected to pass the City Council today with what will reportedly be a narrow majority. The plan is the result of months of negotiations between Mayor Adams and Speaker Adams, and also includes $2 billion for affordable housing, $1 billion for public housing and vouchers, and $2 billion for infrastructure projects. (NY Times)

— Eric Adams bitcoin paychecks have yielded positive results for the mayor, as he bragged in a recent press conference “Remember y’all laughed at me when I first got my Bitcoin… Who’s laughing now?” It is likely that his holdings have increased considerably following Bitcoin’s tremendous 129% run over the year. (DLNews)

— The manhunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s assassin continues today, as the NYPD investigates new evidence of a message engraved on the bullet’s used in the attack. The words engraved are reportedly “deny,” “depose,” and “defend.” Experts say it was likely a professional hit, and the engraved bullets make it more likely that it was designed to send a message. (NY Post)

Capitol Gains

— Kathy Hochul has called on the DHS to double the number of border patrol agents on New York’s northern border. She requested an increase from the current 338 agents to 700. Illegal crossing arrests over the Swanton Sector (NY-NH) of the northern border have increased over 1,800% in the last two years, rising to almost 20,000. (Times Union)

— An estimated 2,600 New York State workers are in for a pay raise, after Gov. Hochul announced a plan to grant pay of increases of $7,000-$13,500 to state-employed professional engineers, architects, land surveyors, landscape architects and geologists. (Rochester First)

— The U.S. Senate confirmed two judicial nominees for the Northern District of New York: former Congressman Anthony Brindisi, who received a 50 to 49 vote, and Elizabeth Coombe, first assistant U.S. attorney in Syracuse, confirmed by a 52 to 46 vote. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer praised both nominees, highlighting Coombe's trailblazing career and Brindisi's qualifications and dedication to Central New York issues. (WRVO)

Trail Mix

— As Rep. Richie Torres plots his bid to primary Kathy Hochul, he is facing the prospect of dealing with his past progressive comments, including one where he called to defund the police: “There needs to be a radical redistribution of resources from policing into social services and community based alternatives to overcriminalization,” he said as he proudly backed the City Council’s $1 billion NYPD budget cut in 2020. He has since tried to monitor his positions overall, but it is unclear if that will be successful. (Politico)

— United Auto Workers has endorsed three candidates in the NYC mayoral primary, and has urged members not to rank Adams at all. Despite the name, New York’s UAW Region 9A represents public defenders, museum staff, academics, and more in the city. The endorsements of Assemblywoman Zohran Mamdani (D-Queens), City Comptroller Brad Lander (D), and State Sen. Jessica Ramos (D-Queens) is not a shift, as they did not back Adams in 2021. (The City)

— Democratic State Sen. Zellnor Myrie has unveiled his own competing housing proposal to the ‘City of Yes’ as he makes his pitch for the mayors office ahead of the City Council vote today. Myrie called for over 1 million new homes, and a plan which he called “Mega Midtown” to increase density on sites approved to build residential towers. (Zellnor Myrie)