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08-11-2025
WASHINGTON/ NEW YORK: United States President Donald Trump has suggested that he is open to assisting New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, but warned that the trailblazing democratic socialist will need to be “respectful” of Washington to succeed.
Trump made the comments on Wednesday as Mamdani announced his transition team following his historic election as the first Muslim and first South Asian mayor of the US’s largest city.
Responding to Mamdani’s victory night remarks pledging to stand up to Trump, the US president described the mayor-elect’s comments as a “dangerous statement”.
“He has to be a little bit respectful of Washington, because if he’s not, he doesn’t have a chance of succeeding,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier “and I want to make him succeed. I want to make the city succeed,” Trump added, before quickly clarifying that he wanted New York City, not Mamdani, to succeed.
Earlier on Wednesday, Trump suggested that his administration would “help” the new mayor, even as he branded him a “communist”.
“The communists, Marxists, and globalists had their chance, and they delivered nothing but disaster, and now let’s see how a communist does in New York. We’re going to see how that works out,” Trump said in a speech to the American Business Forum in Miami, Florida.
“We’ll help him, we’ll help him. We want New York to be successful. We’ll help him a little bit, maybe.” Trump railed against Mamdani in the run-up to Tuesday’s mayoral election in New York, describing him as a “communist lunatic” and threatening to cut off federal funding to the city if he won the race.
Mamdani, whose platform includes free universal childcare, free buses, and government-run grocery stores, has rejected the communist label, describing himself as a democratic socialist.
While Mamdani will be responsible for governing a city of about 8.5 million people, his election has been widely seen as having implications nationwide amid the Democratic Party’s struggles to reconcile its centrist and progressive factions and effectively counter Trump. In his victory speech, Mamdani cast his election as a model for how to defeat Trump, addressing the TV-loving president directly by telling him to “turn the volume up”.
In a speech laying out his priorities on Wednesday, Mamdani, who is set to take office on January 1, reiterated his determination to oppose Trump, while also indicating his willingness to engage with the administration.
“I will not mince my words when it comes to President Trump,” the mayor-elect said.
“I will continue to describe his actions as they are, and I will also always do so while leaving a door open to have that conversation.”
New Yorkers are curious to know what kind of relationship Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani will have with President Donald Trump.
President Trump continuously attacked Mamdani in the lead-up to the election.
During his victory speech, the mayor-elect told the president to “Turn the volume up.”
Both men talked about each other on Wednesday.
“Now let’s see how a communist does in New York. We’re going to see how that works out, and we’ll help him. We’ll help him. We want New York to be successful,” President Trump said. “I continue to be interested in having a conversation with President Trump on the ways in which we can work together to serve New Yorkers, whether that be delivering on his campaign promises around cost of living or the many issues that New Yorkers have been sharing with me about the drastic impacts that the legislation that President Trump has ushered through Washington will mean for them and their lives,” Mamdani said. (Int’l News Desk)
