First, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and President Donald Trump struck up an unlikely friendship. Then, the Trump administration ordered prosecutors to sidestep DOJ norms and drop corruption charges against Adams so that he could focus on cracking down on immigration.

This episode was produced by Amanda Lewellyn and Devan Schwartz, edited by Jolie Myers, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Noel King.

Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast

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New York City Mayor Eric Adams as he arrived for a court hearing earlier this month. Photo by Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images.

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