‘My State Is Not Run by Serious People’: Performers Dance to ‘Suit & Tie’ Before Kathy Hochul’s State of the State Address

Performers danced to Justin Timberlake’s “Suit & Tie” ahead of New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) State of the State Address, confounding countless Americans who concluded that the Empire State is not run by serious people.

Prior to Hochul taking the stage, the New York Liberty Timeless Torches — a dance group comprised of those over the age of 40 — busted a move, performing to the famed Timberlake song. As clips surfaced on social media in the following days, many wondered if it was real or a spoof. However, it is not a spoof and was clearly performed before the address, as can be seen below.

“My state is not run by serious people,” one social media user concluded, sharing the video.

“That dance you do after misappropriating all your taxpayer funds,” another user said.

Another said, “Simply amazing that this was given a go ahead. This is more proof New York is a dumpster fire.”

Others expressed outrage at this taking place as the state continues to deal with serious crime issues, particularly in New York City.

“Kathy Hochul is garbage. She could care less about the subway crime,” one X user remarked.

“I just wanted to go on the record to say that we did not book any dancers for @GovRonDeSantis’ State of the State address,” Gov. Ron DeSantis’s Press Secretary Jeremy Redfern said in response to Hochul.

“I know this news is disappointing to some, but we believe FL’s budget must remain roughly half NY’s, even though FL has more people and better roads,” he added.

Meanwhile, Hochul has simply stated that the “surge” in crimes on the transit system “cannot continue,” asserting it must be tackled “head-on.”

“Many of these horrific incidents have involved people with serious untreated mental illness, the result of a failure to get treatment to people who are living on the streets and are disconnected from our mental health care system,” she said in a statement released January 3, continuing:

This is an issue that has plagued New York for decades. I took office after nearly half a century of disinvestment in mental health care and supportive housing, which directly contributed to the crisis we see on our streets and subways. I pledged to reverse that trend, launching a $1 billion plan to transform the continuum of care. We created mental health outreach teams that have already helped 750 New Yorkers get off the streets and into stable care. We’re close to reaching our goal of bringing 1,000 inpatient psychiatric beds back online, so individuals who need care have a place to go. And we’re imposing new regulations on mental health facilities to ensure patients are discharged with a treatment action plan. This is critical work, and I’m grateful to the many mental health professionals and nonprofit partners who are helping us implement these policies.

“I’m also deeply grateful for the men and women of law enforcement, who put on the uniform every single day and fight to keep our subways safe. The NYPD has primary authority to patrol the subways, and we’ve supported their efforts by deploying additional State Police, MTA Police and 1,000 members of the New York National Guard. I directed the MTA to install security cameras in every single subway car, and now that the project is complete these cameras are helping police solve crimes even faster. Fighting crime requires collaboration at all levels of law enforcement, and I’m committed to continuing our strong partnership with City Hall to address this issue.

She made no mention of illegal immigrant crime or of the fact that the suspect charged with lighting a sleeping woman on fire, Sebastian Zapeta, is a Guatemalan man in the U.S. illegally.