New York (EFE).- New York’s incoming Mayor Zohran Mamdani told the press on Thursday that his meeting with United States President Donald Trump on Friday “it’s not about a relationship with an individual, it’s about a relationship between New York City and the White House, the president, the federal administration.”
The 34-year-old Democrat said he will discuss public safety, economic security, and the affordability agenda with the Republican leader.
Mamdani noted at a press conference in front of City Hall that they were looking forward to an affordable housing agenda that benefits New Yorkers.
“New Yorkers for whom the daily acts of live are becoming increasingly harder to afford,” he said.
Trump announced the meeting on his official Truth Social account, claiming that Mamdani requested it and calling him a “communist mayor.”
Mamdani, the son of migrants, who was born in Uganda, has promised to defend vulnerable communities and oppose any federal decision he deems harmful to the city.
New York City’s incoming mayor, who will take office on Jan. 1, 2026, recently asked the White House to refrain from sending the National Guard to New York, as done in other Democratic-governed cities, such as Chicago and Portland.
The Democratic lawmaker has advocated for passing a street vending reform that protects vendors and guarantees their quality of life.
“When I asked those New Yorkers who they voted for and why, I met many who voted for President Trump, and they told me it was the affordability crisis, it was cost of living, cost of living, cost of living,” Mamdani said.
“They said that they remembered being able to afford their rent, their child care, their Con Ed, their public transit more four years ago than they could in that moment,” he added.
Trump, a New Yorker, paid close attention to the mayoral election won by the Democrat on Nov. 4. During the campaign, he even asked for a vote for the independent Andrew Cuomo, assuring voters that he would only allocate the bare “minimum” to his “beloved first home” if Mamdani won.
Before the election, Trump threatened to arrest and deport Mamdani if he won the election and denied him federal funds.
“If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required, to my beloved first home, because of the fact that, as a Communist, this once great City has ZERO chance of success, or even survival!” Trump wrote two days before the election.
After Mamdani won the election, Trump said he would talk with the mayor-elect if he contacted him first. Then, on Sunday, Trump announced that the progressive politician wanted to meet with him in Washington. This meeting would take place after months of confrontation between the two politicians.
As of Monday, Mamdani confirmed that his team had spoken with the White House about meeting with Trump to “fulfill a commitment” he made with New Yorkers during the campaign.
He said he is willing to meet with anyone, as long as doing so benefits the eight and a half million people who call this city home. EFE
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