President Donald Trump on Wednesday, in what appeared to be a continuation of his extreme attacks on Zohran Mamdani, vowed to use the powers of the presidency to block the New York City Democratic mayoral nominee. The President did not use Mamdani’s name but did use the same slur he has used against him in recent days.
“As President of the United States,” Trump wrote on Wednesday on his social media website, “I’m not going to let this Communist Lunatic destroy New York. Rest assured, I hold all the levers, and have all the cards. I’ll save New York City, and make it “Hot” and “Great” again, just like I did with the Good Ol’ USA!”
It was unclear if Trump was suggesting he would attempt to block Mamdani from being elected or block his agenda should he become New York City’s mayor.
Trump has previously referred to Mamdani, who is not a communist but a member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America, as a communist.
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On Tuesday, Trump threatened to arrest Mamdani if he interfered with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in NYC. He also threatened to deport Mamdani, who is currently serving as an elected New York State assemblyman.
“Well then we’ll have to arrest him,” Trump said when a reporter mentioned Mamdani might block ICE agents in New York City should he win the mayoral election, as The Washington Post reported. “Look, we don’t need a communist in this country, but if we have one, I’m going to be watching over them very carefully on behalf of the nation.”
“Trump’s attack on the mayoral candidate echoed language he has long used to lend credibility to falsehoods,” The New York Times reported:
“A lot of people are saying he’s here illegally,” Trump said of Mamdani. “We’re going to look at everything.”
Mamdani spoke out against Trump’s threats.
“The President of the United States just threatened to have me arrested, stripped of my citizenship, put in a detention camp and deported. Not because I have broken any law but because I will refuse to let ICE terrorize our city,” Mamdani said on Tuesday, The Post also reported.
“His statements don’t just represent an attack on our democracy but an attempt to send a message to every New Yorker who refuses to hide in the shadows: if you speak up, they will come for you. We will not accept this intimidation,” he added.
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“He’s a communist,” Trump had told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo in an interview that aired Sunday. “I think it’s very bad for New York. I don’t know that he’s gonna get in. It’s inconceivable … but he’s a Communist, and he’s pure Communist. I think he admits it. I can’t imagine it, but let’s say this: If he does get in, I’m gonna be president, then he’s going to have to do the right thing, but they’re not getting any money. He’s got to do the right thing.”
Mamdani has directly denied being a communist, and likens his use of the term “democratic socialist” to remarks made by the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as HuffPost reported. He also commented on Trump’s attacks.
“I have already had to start to get used to the fact that the president will talk about how I look, how I sound, where I’m from, who I am,” Mamdani told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “Ultimately, because he wants to distract from what I’m fighting for, and I’m fighting for the very working people that he ran a campaign to empower, that he has since then betrayed.”
Watch a short clip of Trump’s remarks on Tuesday below or at this link.