Former New York City mayor Eric Adams has delivered a scathing retort to television host Andy Cohen, suggesting he requires treatment for alcohol addiction. This follows a drunken on-air tirade from Cohen targeting Adams during CNN's live New Year's Eve coverage from Times Square.
A Sloppy Send-Off on Live Television
The incident unfolded moments after the iconic ball drop ushered in the new year. Cohen, who has co-hosted the CNN special with Anderson Cooper for nine years, was seen with a drink in hand as he launched into an impromptu and increasingly slurred critique of the outgoing mayor. Adams's term officially concluded as the clock struck midnight.
Attempting to begin a sentence about "the final moments of Mayor Adams's chaotic..." Cohen was repeatedly interrupted by a visibly uncomfortable Cooper, who urged him to stop and even tried to walk out of the camera frame. Undeterred, the Bravo executive pressed on, referencing the dismissal of a federal corruption case against Adams in April. "Great, you got your pardons, now go off into the sunset," Cohen stated, advising Adams to "go dance away" at clubs.
Adams's Blunt Two-Letter Rebuttal
When questioned by the New York Post about the rant on Thursday, Adams chuckled before issuing a pointed response. "I have two letters for him: AA," Adams said, explicitly referencing Alcoholics Anonymous. He later amplified this message on social media platform X, characterising Cohen's diatribe as "another sloppy drunken rant."
"If anyone actually cares about him, they'll tell him to get help," Adams wrote. "New Yorkers aren't laughing with him. They are concerned about him. Public intoxication is a disease. He should seek help." The former mayor concluded his post with a personalised acronym: "AAA: Andy's Alcohol Anonymous."
Mixed Reactions and a Mayoral Transition
Public reaction to the viral clip was divided. While many on social media found the awkward exchange hilarious, Adams framed it as a serious concern. He also noted that Cohen was only safe to rant in a crowded Times Square due to the heightened police presence he had overseen.
The event marked a symbolic end to Adams's tenure. Just before the rant, he had been on stage pushing the button to begin the ball drop countdown. His term concluded where it began four years prior, at a historic decommissioned subway station in Manhattan, where Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani was privately sworn in as the city's first Muslim mayor.
Cohen did offer one begrudging compliment amidst his criticism, acknowledging Adams may have "dented the rat population" in the city, though he quickly questioned if that was a metaphor. Representatives for Andy Cohen have not yet commented on Adams's statements.
