WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump praised the electoral victory of incoming New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani at the White House on Friday (Nov 21) in the first in-person meeting for the political opposites, who have clashed over everything from immigration to economic policy.
A democratic socialist and little-known state lawmaker who won New York’s mayoral race earlier this month, Mamdani requested the sit-down with Trump to discuss cost-of-living issues and public safety.
“We have one thing in common: we want this city of ours that we love to do very well,” Trump said after inviting journalists into the Oval Office following a private meeting. “I want to congratulate the mayor, he really ran an incredible race against some very tough people, very smart people.”
“It was a productive meeting focused on a place of shared admiration and love, which is New York City, and the need to deliver affordability to New Yorkers,” Mamdani said.
Trump said he was happy to put aside partisan differences. “The better he does the happier I am,” Trump said.
As Mamdani surged in the polls to victory, Trump, a Republican, issued threats to strip federal funding from the biggest US city. The mayor-elect has regularly criticised a range of Trump’s policies, including plans to ramp up federal immigration enforcement efforts in New York City, where four in ten residents are foreign-born.
The 79-year-old president, a former New York resident, has labeled Mamdani, 34, as a “radical left lunatic,” a communist and “Jew hater,” without offering evidence for those assertions.
Mamdani has espoused Nordic-style democratic socialism, not communism. While a staunch critic of Israel, he was endorsed by prominent Jewish politicians, is bringing in Jewish staff in his new administration, notably New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, and has repeatedly condemned antisemitism.
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