De Blasio: 'Amazon took their ball and went home'

Feb. 17 (UPI) -- New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio blamed Amazon for canceling plans to build a second headquarters in the city, saying the retail giant "took their ball and went home."

Amazon had selected Queens and suburban Washington, D.C., in November as locations for its so-called HQ2. The plan would have reportedly involved an investment of $5 billion from the company and the creation of more than 50,000 jobs.

The announcement caused both excitement and criticism with some politicians saying de Blasio gave up too much specifically in tax breaks to lure Amazon to New York City.

In the deal, Amazon would have received nearly $3 billion in state and local incentives for its Queens location in exchange for generating $27 billion in tax revenue over 25 years.

Last week, Amazon ended its Queens, Long Island, plan, citing a lack of political support.

"For Amazon, the commitment to build a new headquarters requires positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term," Amazon said in a statement.

De Blasio said in an interview Sunday night with NBC's Meet the Press that he wasn't upset with progressives who criticized his deal, it was Amazon that abused its power and wasn't being a good corporate citizen.

"I have no problem with my fellow progressives critiquing a deal or wanting more from Amazon - I wanted more from Amazon, too. The bottom line is this was an example of an abuse of corporate power," he said, adding that by reneging on the deal Amazon left working people "high and dry" because it couldn't deal with New York politics and criticism.

"They couldn't handle the heat in the kitchen, is what it looks like," he said.

He said that in canceling this deal, Amazon is confirming the public's "worst fears" about corporate America with the nation's wealthy saying they will only do business under their terms.

"And I think it's going to frustrate people all over this country to see a company treat a neighborhood and a city like that," he said.