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Trump celebrated the DOT's move on Wednesday, saying on his social media platform Truth Social, \"CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!\"

During a fiery press briefing Wednesday afternoon, Hochul pushed back against the Trump administration's move and the president's remarks on Truth Social.

\"Well, I'm here to say, New York hasn't labored under a king in over 250 years, and we sure as hell are not going to start now,\" she said to applause while holding up an image the White House had posted earlier that day on X of Trump wearing a crown with the phrase, \"Long live the king.\"

\"PHOTO:
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
PHOTO: New York Governor Kathy Hochul (C) holds a picture of US President Donald Trump during a press conference at Grand Central Terminal on Feb. 19, 2025 in New York City.
>

\"In case you don't know New Yorkers, when we're in a fight, we do not back down -- not now, not ever,\" she said, adding that the state has \"a lot of legal reasons why we know we're going to be victorious.\"

Hochul called the DOT's attempt to block the program an attack on the state's independence from Washington and pointed to the concerns from New Jersey cited in Duffy's letter.

\"In what world should we be standing down to the will of another state,\" she asked.

The MTA has said the toll would enable it to issue $15 billion in bonds to help fund capital projects.

In response to Murphy's letter to Trump, Hochul told reporters last month that if the congestion pricing plan is ultimately killed, \"that comes with $15 billion more\" the federal government will need to give to New York.

Hochul touted the success of the program on Wednesday, saying that congestion has \"dropped dramatically\" since the congestion pricing went into effect last month.

\"Broadway shows are selling out and foot traffic to local businesses is spiking. School buses are getting kids to class on time, and yellow cab trips increased by 10%,\" she said in her statement. \" Transit ridership is up, drivers are having a better experience, and support for this program is growing every day.\"

Lieber also highlighted the program's early success, saying traffic was down 9% in January, 1.2 million fewer vehicles entered Manhattan's Central Business District and bus speeds are up.

\"The streets are safer -- half as many crashes, and that means pedestrians are not getting injured and killed,\" he added.

He also said more people are coming to the area, with a \"surge\" in pedestrian traffic and an increase in restaurant reservations and Broadway grosses.

\"People want to be in New York,\" he said.

Support for DOT's move

Several officials who have called the congestion pricing plan into question thanked Trump and Duffy for their efforts to halt the program, including Gov. Murphy.

\"While I have consistently expressed openness to a form of congestion pricing that meaningfully protects the environment and does not unfairly burden hardworking New Jersey commuters, the current program lines the MTA's pockets at the expense of New Jerseyans,\" Murphy said in a statement.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman also expressed his gratitude to Trump and Duffy for their efforts to terminate what he called an \"oppressive tax on the hard-working families of the metropolitan area.\"

\"Taxing people for the privilege of being on a public thoroughfare, to me, is wrong,\" he said during a press briefing on Wednesday.

ABC News' Jason Volack contributed to this report.

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