DNC chair dismisses Zohran Mamdani's refusal to condemn ‘intifada' chants: ‘We are a big tent party'
Martin, elected to lead the DNC in February, suggested that his party welcomes users of the chant associated with violent uprisings against Israel, in an interview with PBS.
'You know, there's no candidate in this party that I agree 100% of the time with, to be honest with you,' Martin said, when asked by 'PBS NewsHour' host Amna Nawaz about Mamdani's repeated defense of the rallying cry for anti-Israel protesters.
3 Zohran Mamdani speaks at a 'Within Our Lifetime Palestine Protest' in front of a sign calling for an 'Intifada revolution' on May 12, 2021.
Instagram/@zohrankmamdani
'There's things that I don't agree with Mamdani that he said, but at the end of the day, I always believe, as a Democratic Party chair in Minnesota for the last 14 years and now the chair of the DNC, that you win through addition, you win by bringing people into your coalition,' he continued. 'We have conservative Democrats, we have centrist Democrats, we have labor progressives like me and we have this new brand of Democrat, which is the leftists, and we win by bringing people into that coalition.'
'At the end of the day, for me, that's the type of party we're going to lead. We are a big tent party.'
Mamdani, an outspoken critic of Israel, has both awkwardly defended activists' use of 'globalize the intifada' and has flat-out refused to condemn it on several occasions.
The Queens assemblyman described the chant as an adage that reflects the 'desperate desire for equality and equal rights in standing up for Palestinian human rights,' in an interview with the Bulwark last month that went viral.
Mamdani later repeatedly refused to condemn the slogan, viewed by some as a call for violence against Jews, in an interview on NBC's 'Meet the Press.'
'That's not language that I use. The language that I use and the language that I will continue to use to lead this city is that which speaks clearly to my intent, which is an intent grounded in a belief in universal human rights,' he told host Kristen Welker on June 29.
3 DNC Chair Ken Martin is interviewed during PBS Newshour on July 10, 2025.
PBS NewsHour
3 Zohran Mamdani at the United Palace in New York on July 10, 2025.
Matthew McDermott
'I don't believe that the role of the mayor is to police speech in that manner.'
Some Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), have called on the socialist Democratic nominee to clarify his position on the slogan.
If elected, Mamdani would become the first Muslim mayor of New York City.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Netanyahu says Israel considering alternatives to ceasefire talks with Hamas
The Israeli government is considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks with Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday, after Israel and the US recalled their negotiating teams, throwing the future of the negotiations into further uncertainty. Mr Netanyahu's statement came as a Hamas official said negotiations were expected to resume next week and portrayed the recall of the Israeli and US delegations as a pressure tactic. The teams left Qatar on Thursday as President Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said Hamas' latest response to proposals for a deal showed a 'lack of desire' to reach a truce. Mr Witkoff said the US will look at 'alternative options', without elaborating. In a statement released by his office, Mr Netanyahu echoed him, saying, 'Hamas is the obstacle to a hostage release deal'. 'Together with our US allies, we are now considering alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas's terror rule, and secure lasting peace for Israel and our region,' he said. He did not elaborate. Israel's government did not say whether negotiations would resume next week. A breakthrough on a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas has eluded the Trump administration as humanitarian conditions worsen in Gaza. Israel has come under mounting pressure as hunger among Gaza's more than two million people has worsened and deaths related to malnutrition have accelerated. In recent days more then two dozen western-aligned countries and more than 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticising Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. The charities and rights groups said even their own staff were struggling to get enough food. On Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that France would recognise Palestine as a state, saying: 'The urgent thing today is that the war in Gaza stops and the civilian population is saved.' Hamas official Bassem Naim said on Friday that he was told the Israeli delegation returned home for consultations and would return early next week to resume ceasefire negotiations. The sides have held weeks of talks in Qatar, reporting small signs of progress but no major breakthroughs. Officials have said a main sticking point is the redeployment of Israeli troops after any ceasefire takes place. The deal under discussion is expected to include an initial 60-day ceasefire in which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 others in phases in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Aid supplies would be ramped up, and the two sides would hold negotiations on a lasting ceasefire. The talks have been bogged down over competing demands for ending the war. Hamas says it will only release all hostages in exchange for a full Israeli withdrawal and end to the war. Israel says it will not agree to end the conflict until Hamas gives up power and disarms. The militant group says it is prepared to leave power but not surrender its weapons. Hamas is believed to be holding the hostages in different locations, including tunnels, and says it has ordered its guards to kill them if Israeli forces approach. Some 50 hostages remain in Gaza but fewer than half are believed to be Israeli strikes continued across Gaza. At least 22 people were killed since Thursday night, according to hospital records at Nasser Hospital where the bodies arrived. Some were killed in strikes, others and others were killed while seeking aid, said the hospital.
Miami Herald
7 minutes ago
- Miami Herald
Miami-Dade Mayor demands ‘immediate access' and oversight over Alligator Alcatraz
The Mayor of Miami-Dade County is once again demanding access to Alligator Alcatraz, the immigrant detention center in the Everglades that was rapidly built on property seized from the county. Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's letter to the state, issued Friday, was a stern call for 'immediate access and oversight authority' and requested a response by July 28. 'As the legal property owner of this site, the County is entitled to conduct inspections and assert oversight over any ongoing operations, including those initiated under emergency declarations,' she wrote. Levine Cava's letter highlighted her concerns about inhumane conditions for detainees, referencing a Miami Herald news story about a 15-year-old who was briefly housed at the site. She reiterated her issues with the environmental impacts of the detention facility, as well as the lack of a publicly available plan for evacuations in the event of a hurricane. The new letter repeats many of the concerns outlined in a July 8 letter that Levine Cava also sent to the state. After a flashy opening day tour featuring right-wing influencers, President Donald Trump and Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Florida has allowed only limited access inside the detention facilities. READ MORE: Miami archbishop asks to hold Mass at Alligator Alcatraz. 'Still waiting' for answer Florida politicians did get a guided tour on July 12. Republicans said they saw a well-run and orderly facility and Democrats said they were given too limited a view to answer many of their questions about conditions. Levine Cava's new letter repeated her previously ignored requests for weekly updates from Alcatraz staff about the center, as well as remote video access of the detention facility — or third-party access for ongoing observation. 'The County received no formal communication from your office prior to the development and deployment of this facility, and repeated efforts to seek transparency have been ignored or rebuffed. Our residents deserve full accountability for operations taking place on County-owned property,' she wrote.
The Intercept
7 minutes ago
- The Intercept
Is AIPAC Testing the Waters to Primary Rep. Summer Lee?
Pro-Israel groups are considering backing two potential primary challengers against progressive Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa. A survey sent earlier this month to people living in Pittsburgh and its suburbs asked for respondents' opinion on two possible candidates to challenge Lee. The survey included a question on people's opinions about the candidates being backed by 'a right-wing organization that supports Trump and is funded by MAGA millionaires and billionaires.' The survey question appears set up to test whether voters would oppose one of the candidates because of backing from groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee — which is funded by billionaire donors to Donald Trump and, in 2020, endorsed more than 100 Republican members of Congress who voted to overturn the results of that year's presidential election. The wording was identical to another survey sent in May to constituents in the district of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., The Intercept reported. That survey was the first this year to indicate that AIPAC was considering a primary challenge against Omar. With the latest poll, it appears that AIPAC and possibly other pro-Israel groups are setting their sights on another challenge against Lee. 'As usual, AIPAC sees the Democratic electorate begging for more progressive leadership that takes on the corporate elite, and they are desperate to force corporate shills down our throats instead,' said Usamah Andrabi, the communications director for Justice Democrats, a group backing Lee. (AIPAC did not respond to a request for comment.) The survey in Lee's district also said both potential candidates, Pittsburgh City Controller Rachael Heisler and former Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, were backed by 'pro-Israel groups that lobby Congress to provide billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars in aid and weapons to Israel each year.' Lee and Omar are two of a handful of progressive members of Congress who have drawn the ire of AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups for calling to end U.S. military funding to Israel and criticizing Israel's genocide in Gaza. AIPAC spent more than $100 million on primaries last cycle, including more than $25 million to unseat Reps. Cori Bush, D-Mo., and Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y. Lee, Omar, and other progressives have also been vocal critics of AIPAC. Lee introduced a bill earlier this year to ban super PACs like AIPAC's United Democracy Project, which spent millions of dollars against her when she first ran for Congress in 2022. Lee won reelection last year against another Republican-backed pro-Israel primary challenger. In that race, The Intercept reported. AIPAC tried and failed to recruit two candidates to run against her. 'Every cycle, corporate lobbies, special interest groups and Trump megadonors look to buy this Congressional seat,' Lee said in a statement. 'My constituents want leaders who fight for their interests against the wealthy & well-connected, not politicians that can be bought with a corporate PAC check.' The survey asked a series of questions about positions taken by candidates that aligned more closely with Republicans than liberal Democrats. 'It's no mistake that they're polling the viability of candidates that evidently oppose the Affordable Care Act, Medicare for All, same-sex marriage, the Green New Deal, abortion rights, Medicare, and Social Security,' said Andrabi. 'AIPAC's favorite type of Democrat is one you can most easily mistake for a Republican and most easily.' The survey in Pittsburgh asked people to rate their level of concern in response to pro-Israel groups supporting both Heisler and DePasquale, and whether they would support either candidate in a Democratic primary election against Lee. 'Rachael Heisler is supported by pro-Israel groups that lobby Congress to provide billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars in aid and weapons to Israel each year,' the survey said. 'Please indicate whether it raises very serious concerns, serious concerns, minor concerns, or no real concerns for you about Rachael Heisler.' The survey posed the same question about DePasquale. The poll also asked respondents to rate their level of concern about potential criticisms of Lee, DePasquale, and Heisler. Criticisms of Lee included her vote against former President Joe Biden's debt deal, her support for the Uncommitted movement in 2024, and the claim that 'Lee is more interested in dividing Democrats' than fighting Trump's agenda. 'Summer Lee is too extreme,' read another prompt. 'She has long associated herself with the Democratic Socialists of America which supports defunding the police, eliminating prisons and releasing all criminals, opening our borders, getting rid of individually-owned cars, abolishing U-S-A-I-D, and withdrawing from NATO. Summer Lee's radical positions do not reflect our community.' (Lee is no longer a member of DSA.) Respondents were asked to rate their concerns about the statement. In a section asking about possible criticism of DePasquale, the survey asked respondents how they felt about him taking corporate PAC money and opposing progressive policy efforts like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal. Read our complete coverage 'While progressive Democrats have called for getting corporate money out of politics, Eugene DePasquale has taken tens of thousands of dollars from corporate PACs, including from major corporations like AT&T, Comcast, Pfizer and PNC Bank,' the survey said. It added that DePasquale 'calls himself a progressive' but opposed Medicare for All, rejected the Green New Deal, opposed same sex marriage, praised parts of Trump's agenda, and supported expanding the state's natural gas industry. (DePasquale did not respond to a request for comment.) DePasquale has supported gay marriage publicly since at least 2012. In 2020, He said he did not support the Green New Deal or Medicare for All, and favored a public option and improvements to the Affordable Care Act. On the environment, DePasquale has a mixed record. During a race for Pennsylvania attorney general and as state auditor, he came down on the side with energy interests and climate activists, respectively. Posing potential criticisms of Heisler, the survey asked respondents how concerned they were about the claim that Heisler had 'a record of standing with the wealthy and powerful' and worked with groups advancing policies to benefit billionaires, including gutting Social Security and Medicare. The survey also asked respondents how they felt about Heisler donating to the 2018 campaign of anti-abortion Democrat Dan Lipinski in Illinois. It also asked them to rate their concerns about Heisler working for former Rep. Jason Altmire, a Pennsylvania Democrat who voted against the ACA in 2010. (Heisler did not respond to a request for comment.) Respondents were also asked to rate their opinion of other officials and groups including Altmire; Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Democratic Socialists of America; Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato; Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro; and Sen. John Fetterman. Both Heisler and DePasquale have expressed support for Israel and efforts by pro-Israel groups to influence policy in Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania. DePasquale was endorsed last year by two groups that also backed Lee's primary challenger, Bhavini Patel. Earlier this year, Heisler fought a referendum petition organized by anti-genocide activists to push Pittsburgh to divest from governments engaged in genocide — namely Israel. (Not On Our Dime did not respond to a request for comment.) Last year, Heisler went on a $15,000 trip paid for by AIPAC's educational arm, which it uses to send politicians to Israel, a typical step in the group's efforts to recruit a candidate. George Latimer, the AIPAC-funded candidate who unseated Bowman, the New York representative, took a trip to Israel shortly before he announced his primary challenge. 'My constituents want leaders who fight for their interests against the wealthy and well-connected, not politicians that can be bought with a corporate PAC check,' Lee said. 'They can keep polling and we're going to keep fighting back against the Trump administration to protect and deliver for our constituents.'
