Democrats could do a lot better with the power they hold
THE VIDEO of Brad Lander getting slammed against a wall and arrested by federal immigration agents shocked New Yorkers, who are not easily shocked. On June 17th the mild-mannered city comptroller had been attempting to escort a migrant through a federal building in Manhattan as agents tried to detain the man. 'It's bullshit,' said Kathy Hochul, the Democratic governor of New York, of Mr Lander's arrest. It came a week before a crowded Democratic primary for New York City mayor, in which the city comptroller is a candidate. The arrest may well help his campaign, but it marked yet another skirmish over immigration with Donald Trump's administration. It is just the latest escalation in a confrontation with cities and states that did not vote for the president, on a topic where the public supports him most.
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NBC News
3 hours ago
- NBC News
NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani responds to accusations of antisemitism
While at an event in Manhattan, New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani responded to accusations of antisemitism after he appeared to defend the slogan 'globalize the intifada' during an interview. Mamdani also became emotional when he described the vitriol he has faced as a Muslim mayoral 19, 2025
NBC News
5 hours ago
- NBC News
NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani draws criticism for ‘intifada' remarks
Zohran Mamdani, a candidate in the Democratic primary for the New York City mayoral election, drew pushback from Jewish organizations and political leaders this week after he appeared to defend the slogan 'globalize the intifada.' In an interview with The Bulwark posted Tuesday, Mamdani was asked whether the expression made him uncomfortable. In response, Mamdani said the slogan captured 'a desperate desire for equality and equal rights in standing up for Palestinian human rights.' He said the U.S. Holocaust Museum had used the word 'intifada' in Arabic-language descriptions of the 1944 Warsaw Uprising against Nazi Germany. Mamdani, a progressive New York State Assemblyman who has forcefully criticized the Israeli government, also addressed the rise in antisemitism since the Oct. 7 terror attack and the war in Gaza, saying anti-Jewish prejudice was 'a real issue in our city' and one that the next mayor should focus on 'tackling.' He added that he believes the city's community safety offices should increase funding for anti-hate crime measures. In a post on X on Wednesday, the Washington-based U.S. Holocaust Museum sharply condemned Mamdani's remarks: 'Exploiting the Museum and the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising to sanitize 'globalize the intifada' is outrageous and especially offensive to survivors. Since 1987 Jews have been attacked and murdered under its banner. All leaders must condemn its use and the abuse of history.' The U.S. Holocaust Museum did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how it had translated the Warsaw Uprising into Arabic. Jonathan Greenblatt, the chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, decried the phrase on X as an 'explicit incitement to violence.' Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., who is Jewish, said in a statement that the term 'intifada' is 'well understood to refer to the violence terror attacks against innocent Israeli civilians that occurred during the First and Second Intifadas.' 'If Mr. Mamdani is unwilling to heed the request of major Jewish organizations to condemn this unquestionably antisemitic phrase,' Goldman added, 'then he is unfit to lead a city with 1.3 million Jews — the largest Jewish population outside of Israel.' Mamdani has also faced criticism from some of the other candidates in the crowded Democratic primary field — including the frontrunner, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo's polling advantage has narrowed in recent weeks as Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist, built momentum and nabbed a key endorsement from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. In a statement, Cuomo called on all the contenders in the race to 'denounce' Mamdani's comments and invoked recent violent attacks on Jewish people nationwide. 'At a time when we are seeing antisemitism on the rise and in fact witnessing once again violence against Jews resulting in their deaths in Washington, D.C. or their burning in Denver — we know all too well that words matter,' Cuomo said in part, referring to the killings of two Israeli Embassy employees and an attack on Israeli hostage advocates in Boulder. 'They fuel hate. They fuel murder.' The war in Gaza and the spike in antisemitism have loomed large over New York City's mayoral primary. Cuomo, 67, casts himself as a fierce defender of Israel and pitches himself to Jewish residents and ideological moderates as the obvious choice in the race. Mamdani, who has characterized Israel's conduct in Gaza as 'genocide,' gained traction partly thanks to enthusiastic support from the city's progressives. Mamdani, speaking to reporters at a press event in Harlem on Wednesday, addressed the outcry over his interview with The Bulwark and the ensuing pushback, saying in part that 'it pains me to be called an antisemite.' 'I've said at every opportunity that there is no room for antisemitism in this city, in this country. I've said that because that is something I personally believe,' Mamdani said. He broke down crying as he described the vitriol he has received as he seeks to become the first Muslim mayor of New York City. 'I get messages that say: 'The only good Muslim is a dead Muslim.' I get threats on my life, on the people that I love,' Mamdani said, eyes welling up with tears. New York City's Democratic mayoral primary is on June 24. The scandal-plagued incumbent mayor, Eric Adams, won election as a Democrat in 2021, but he is not participating in the party's nominating contest. He is reportedly petitioning to run on two independent ballot lines: 'EndAntiSemitism' and 'Safe&Affordable.'
The Independent
6 hours ago
- The Independent
Elon Musk taking New York state to court over hate speech law
Elon Musk has filed a lawsuit against the state of New York, arguing that its new anti- hate speech law aimed at social media companies is unconstitutional. The X owner has taken exception to the Stop Hiding Hate Act, otherwise known as Bill S895B, arguing in the suit that it violates basic free speech rights as guaranteed under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the bill into law in December, requiring tech firms to publish their terms of service and file regular reports outlining the steps they have taken to moderate extreme content, hate speech, disinformation, and other harmful material being shared on their platforms. It finally came into effect this week, but Musk is contesting its stipulations on the basis that they would require X to reveal 'highly sensitive information' about its practices, also opposing its potential $15,000 per violation per day fines. The Act was authored by New York State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal and State Assemblymember Grace Lee, in collaboration with the Anti-Defamation League, to compel tech giants to take greater accountability for disturbing content hosted and shared across their networks. The authors dismissed the objections raised in X 's suit and called it an attempt to 'use the First Amendment as a shield against providing New Yorkers with much-needed transparency.' Hoylman-Sigal and Lee reportedly rejected an approach from Musk's company last year to discuss the bill and suggest amendments, saying they did not believe it was acting in good faith and would only seek to weaken its provisions. 'Now more than ever, with the rise in political violence and threats emanating from the spread of hate speech and disinformation by President Trump and Elon Musk, New Yorkers deserve to know what social media companies like X are doing (or not doing) to stop the spread of hatred and misinformation on their platform,' the duo said this week. X has also launched a legal challenge against an equivalent law in California, an approach consistent with Musk's efforts to reduce content moderation on X, formerly Twitter, since he acquired the company in 2022. As The Guardian has noted, while Musk styles himself as a 'free speech absolutist,' he has a track record of using his platform to attack media outlets that report unfavorably about his activities. Most recently, he has rebuked The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal for reporting on his alleged drug use while working alongside President Donald Trump in the White House. This relationship recently came to a spectacularly acrimonious end, with the two billionaires trading insults on X and Truth Social, respectively.
