It’s a bad line for sure. I watched and read through the follow-up quotes and I think this bit is important to read along with it:

“The mayor was not praising them, he was referencing they have an objective reputation as leaders in technology and innovation, and that it is a danger they are in the president’s orbit,” Housen said. “He certainly doesn’t agree with their politics, which is why he highlighted this through concerns around the actions coming out of DC like significant staffing cuts impacting cybersecurity and the degradation of protections and questions over access to personal data.”

Could’ve been foot-in-mouth syndrome, and I think the concerns he shared about federal layoffs support his real intent. I know it’s easy to see red right now, and that’s why it’s important to distinguish the real problems.