NYC mayor: Columbia should have taken action when first tent went up

NEW YORK — New York City’s Mayor Eric Adams said there should be zero tolerance of encampments on college campuses in protest of the Israel-Hamas war.

“When protests cross the line and go into an area of violence, destruction of property, that is no longer protest,” Adams said Thursday on CNBC’s Squawk Box. “That’s not what democracy is about. That is chaos, and we’re not going to accept that in this city. That’s what we saw on Columbia.”

“You have to, must have zero-tolerance. When the first tent went up, we should have removed it,” he added.

Adams’ remarks come a day after Gov. Brian Kemp said state leaders are “not going to allow Georgia to become the next Columbia University.”

Kemp praised the forceful law enforcement response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Emory University and the University of Georgia, noting that it sent a clear message: The chaos that unfolded on campuses in other states won’t be tolerated here.