Trump admin moves to halt NYC congestion pricing

• "I share the president's concerns about the impacts to working class Americans who now have an additional financial burden to account for in their daily lives," Transportation Sec. Sean Duffy wrote in a letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D).
• "It's mystifying that after four years and 4,000 pages of federally-supervised environmental review – and barely three months after giving final approval to the Congestion Relief Program – USDOT would seek to totally reverse course," MTA chair and CEO Janno Lieber said in a statement.

Zoom in: "We'll see you in court," Hochul said in a statement.

• "We are a nation of laws, not ruled by a king," she also said, referring to an earlier post by President Trump on Truth Social.
• "Manhattan, and all of New York is saved," Trump had said. "Long live the king!"

Context: Congestion pricing went into effect in January after a months-long delay.

• Hochul in June had indefinitely paused the implementation of the toll, weeks before it was originally supposed to take effect, citing concerns about the costs to drivers.
• Duffy argued in his letter that NYC's program "exceeds the authority authorized by Congress" under the Value Pricing Pilot Program.

Zoom out: The administration's move sets up a turf war between federal and state power, with the Republican-led executive branch going against a Democratic-led state.

• The congestion pricing tolls "appear to be driven primarily by the need to raise revenue for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) system as opposed to the need to reduce congestion," Duffy wrote.
• New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) asked the Trump administration to reexamine the program on Inauguration Day.

Reality check: Early MTA data showed that gridlock decreased the first week the toll was in effect.

Go deeper: New York becomes first U.S. city with congestion pricing

Editor's note: This story was updated throughout.