Gov. Kathy Hochul defended her Buffalo church “liquor store” remark as a joke after critics, including Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado, labeled it racially insensitive.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is under fire after joking at a Buffalo megachurch that residents should avoid spending upcoming inflation refund checks at a “liquor store.” Speaking at True Bethel Baptist Church on Sept. 7, Hochul told congregants, “Checks are coming out soon. … Don’t spend it all one day. Get something you really need, OK? Don’t stop by the liquor store, OK? Buy something for the kids – buy them some food.”
Her Black lieutenant governor and 2026 primary challenger, Antonio Delgado, called the remarks “deeply offensive,” saying they reveal “a level of disconnect” and echo her 2024 comment that “black kids in the Bronx don’t know what the word ‘computer’ is.” Delgado added, “You can make racist comments because the nature of the comment speaks to a devaluation of a community.”
Hochul told the New York Post the line was a “lighthearted joke” but conceded it “was not the best way” to promote the tax rebate. True Bethel’s pastor defended her, citing her long friendship with the church.