President Donald Trump lashed out at New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) after she opted to endorse progressive Socialist Zohran Mamdani for mayor of New York City.
Hochul announced her support for Mamdani, the 33-year-old democrat socialist state lawmaker from Queens who shocked the political world in June with his convincing win over former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and nine other candidates to capture the Democratic Party’s mayoral nomination, in the New York Times.
“In the past few months, I’ve had frank conversations with him. We’ve had our disagreements,” the governor wrote. “But in our conversations, I heard a leader who shares my commitment to a New York where children can grow up safe in their neighborhoods and where opportunity is within reach for every family. I heard a leader who is focused on making New York City affordable — a goal I enthusiastically support.”
On Truth Social Monday morning, Trump called Hochul’s endorsement of Mamdan a “shocking development” and “very bad one for New York City.”
Mocking Mamdani as the “‘Liddle’ Communist,” a moniker Trump first coined during his Fox & Friends appearance last week, the president said there’s “no reason to be sending good money” to NYC as a result.
Governor Kathy Hochul of New York has Endorsed the “Liddle’ Communist,” Zohran Mamdani, running for Mayor of New York. This is a rather shocking development, and a very bad one for New York City. How can such a thing happen? Washington will be watching this situation very closely. No reason to be sending good money after bad! President DJT
The governor’s endorsement is significant, as it push Mamdani to secure the support of other key members of the party’s establishment. Hochul’s endorsement will likely put more pressure on the top Democrats in New York State who are still withholding their backing of Mamdani – Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Mamdani, in a statement, said he was “grateful to the Governor for her support in unifying our party — as well as the work she’s done standing up to President Trump, securing free lunch meals for our kids, and expanding access to childcare.”
Mamdani is currently holding a 22-point margin lead over Cuomo and the rest of the field in surveys released last week from Quinnipiac University and New York Times/Siena College. Curtis Sliwa, who for a second straight election is the Republican mayoral nominee in the Democrat-dominated city, was a distant third in the polls, with embattled incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, who is running as an independent, further down in fourth place.
On Sunday, following a new report that Independent candidate Mayor Eric Adams would drop out in the coming days, the mayor’s spokesman fired back.
“Let me be perfectly clear: any rumor or tweet suggesting Mayor Adams is stepping down this week is complete bulls—,” spokesman Todd Shapiro wrote in a statement. “These lies are being spread by desperate opponents who can’t match the mayor’s record, his campaign energy, or his support across this city.”
Mamdani has been heavily criticized by his rivals for his past critical comments of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), and his proposal to shift certain responsibilities away from the NYPD and focus on social services and community-based programs.
Hochul recently said an apology from Mamdani was in order, and the mayoral hopeful told the New York Times a couple of days ago that he intended to apologize.
Hochul said that in her conversations with Mamdani she made “it very clear that our police officers should have every resource to keep our streets and subways safe. I urged him to ensure that there is strong leadership at the helm of the N.Y.P.D. — and he agreed.”
The governor also addressed Mamdani’s past critical comments about Israel.
“We discussed the need to combat the rise of antisemitism urgently and unequivocally. I’ve been glad to see him meet with Jewish leaders across the city, listening and addressing their concerns directly,” Hochul said.
Hochul’s endorsement may not only benefit Mamdani, but could also help the governor shore up support from the Democrats’ progressive base as she seeks re-election next year.
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