The meaning of Zohran Mamdani's win in New York
LOOKING a bit shell-shocked, Andrew Cuomo, New York's former governor, conceded to Zohran Mamdani in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary on June 24th. Until recently, even the most enthusiastic Mamdani supporter could not have imagined that the 33-year-old Democratic Socialist, who until a few months ago was little known outside the neighbourhood in Queens that he represents as a legislator in Albany, would topple one of the biggest names in New York politics. Official confirmation of the result will come once all ranked-choices votes have been counted, which will take until mid-July. The debate over what the result means, for the city and the Democratic Party, won't wait.
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The Independent
16 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump brands Mamdani a ‘100% Communist Lunatic' backed by ‘dummies' who has a ‘grating' voice
Donald Trump blasted New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday, labelling the 33-year-old who beat former governor Andrew Cuomo in a historic win for the Democratic primary, 'a 100% Communist Lunatic' who 'looks TERRIBLE' in a series of mocking Truth Social posts. 'Zohran Mamdani, a 100% Communist Lunatic, has just won the Dem Primary, and is on his way to becoming Mayor. We've had Radical Lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous,' Trump wrote of the state assemblyman, who represents parts of the president's birthplace of Queens. 'He looks TERRIBLE, his voice is grating, he's not very smart, he's got AOC+3, Dummies ALL, backing him, and even our Great Palestinian Senator, Cryin' Chuck Schumer, is groveling over him. Yes, this is a big moment in the History of our Country!' The president, in a second post during his spare moments at the ongoing NATO summit, sarcastically suggested the struggling national Democratic party could get back in 'play' by nominating fellow left-leaning leaders like Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jasmine Crockett, before declaring the country is 'really SCREWED.' The message, part of a torrent of online abuse following Mamdani's win, contains multiple inaccuracies. Firstly, Mamdani is not a communist but rather a democratic socialist. Ocasio-Cortez is the only person mentioned in the posts that has formally endorsed Mamdani, though fellow 'Squad' member Ilhan Omar, as well as Senator Schumer, have both congratulated the state lawmaker on his victory, widely seen as a shock upset of Democratic stalwart and former governor Cuomo. Schumer, the most prominent Jewish lawmaker on Capitol Hill, is not of Palestinian heritage. During Mamdani's campaign — which energized progressive young voters with its savvy online presence and calls for free buses and a rent freeze on rent stabilized apartments — the candidate regularly criticized Trump, claiming his agenda of mass immigration raids were a sign of 'authoritarianism.' He also slammed the usually Republican-backing megadonors who rallied around Cuomo as 'the same billionaires that put Donald Trump in DC,' and made a video ad highlighting the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a recent Columbia University graduate and U.S. permanent resident who is thought to be the first person arrested as part of the Trump administration's crackdown on pro-Palestine student activists. Trump wasn't the only one criticizing Mamdani. During a Wednesday interview on Fox and Friends, current New York City mayor Eric Adams, who plans to run as an independent during the general election in November, called Mamdani a 'snake oil salesman ' who would say 'anything to get elected.' In April, a federal judge dismissed a corruption case against Adams at the request of Trump administration prosecutors, after Adam signaled he would assist the administration on immigration operations. Later that month, Adams initiated a plan to let federal immigration officials operate in New York City's Riker's Island prison, though courts have so far blocked the effort. Critics have alleged the corruption case ended as part of a quid pro quo with Adams, and some federal prosecutors in New York resigned rather than authorizing dropping the bribery case. Adams and the DOJ have denied any wrongdoing. In a preview of his own campaign, which formally kicks off with a rally on Thursday, Adams hammered Mamdani's relative inexperience and alluded to concerns over his stances on Israel during his Fox interview. 'What NYC deserves is a mayor who's proud to run on his record—not one who ran from his record, or one who has no record,' Adams wrote on X. 'We deserve a mayor who will keep driving down crime, support our police, fight antisemitism, and stand up for working-class New Yorkers.' Mamdani has criticized the Israeli war in Gaza as a 'genocide,' but has denied being antisemitic, and has said he will protect Jewish New Yorkers along with other minority groups and seeks to increase funding to stop hate crimes. The outcome of the mayoral race is seen as a referendum on the overall direction of the Democratic party. Mamdani already beat the centrist Cuomo, who was seen as a favorite by much of the Democratic establishment and got the endorsement of former President Bill Clinton, with a campaign that ran well to the left of the national party featuring proposals like government-run low-cost grocery stores and universal childcare. Cuomo, who conceded the Democratic primary race, said Wednesday he's considering an independent run himself. resigned in 2021 facing a series of sexual harassment allegations by women, including former staffers, . During the primary campaign, Cuomo dismissed the allegations as 'all political.'
NBC News
21 minutes ago
- NBC News
The Democratic Party's Mamdani moment: From the Politics Desk
Welcome to the online version of From the Politics Desk, an evening newsletter that brings you the NBC News Politics team's latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail. I n today's edition, Ben Kamisar sifts through the fallout from Zohran Mamdani's surge to the top of the Democratic primary field for New York mayor. Plus, Andrea Mitchell examines the impact of President Donald Trump's questioning of the post-Iran strike intelligence reports. — Adam Wollner What Zohran Mamdani's rise means for the Democratic Party nationally By Ben Kamisar Zohran Mamdani's dramatic, strong showing in New York's Democratic mayoral primary, in which he forced a concession from former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, amounts to a massive shot in the arm for progressives and other Democrats who have been imploring their party's elder statesmen to step aside for a new generation of leaders. Mamdani ran his campaign as an unapologetic progressive against an established favorite who argued his pragmatism would best meet the moment, a 33-year-old fresh face against a field of experienced candidates, a democratic socialist at a time when many Democrats worry whether that moniker alienates them from swing voters and a critic of Israel's conduct in its war against Hamas, despite criticism from moderate Democrats who accused him of stoking antisemitism. Tuesday night's primary was far from a clear test case for any one of those factors, with Cuomo's 2021 resignation as governor amid allegations of sexual harassment and Covid mismanagement also in play. And New York City voters are hardly representative of the swing-district and swing-state electorates that determine who holds power in Washington — one reason Republicans are already using Mamdani as a rhetorical foil to swing-seat Democrats. But Mamdani's surge — putting him on the precipice of the Democratic nomination, with the results of the ranked choice tabulation scheduled to come next week — is putting the rest of the Democratic Party on notice. Democratic divisions: Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a Brooklyn native who endorsed Mamdani, told Ryan Nobles that Tuesday's results are an indication of where the energy is in the Democratic Party — primarily because candidates like Mamdani are focusing on the cost-of-living issues that voters care about. 'He talked to the needs of the working class,' Sanders said. 'He was prepared to take on the billionaire class and their super PACs, mobilize people at the grassroots level who knocked on hundreds of thousands of doors. That's how you win elections.' Democrats' top leaders in Congress — Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, both New Yorkers — offered more muted responses. They released statements congratulating Mamdani, but they didn't explicitly call for the party to fall in line behind him in the general election. And Reps. Laura Gillen and Tom Suozzi, two New York Democrats who are veterans of battleground congressional races, put out statements criticizing Mamdani. Gillen called him 'too extreme,' and Suozzi said his 'concerns remain' about Mamdani. Trump is on a slippery slope as he disputes intelligence on Iran strikes Analysis by Andrea Mitchell 'Obliterated' is the way President Donald Trump has described Iran's Fordo nuclear facility, both within hours of Saturday's complex B-2 strike and again today. At the NATO summit, he and his national security team are furiously disputing a preliminary Pentagon intelligence analysis that the destruction of the nuclear program was less than complete. The conflict betrays a continuing misunderstanding by the White House of the nature of intelligence. The Defense Intelligence Agency is one of 17 agencies intensely studying the results of the extraordinarily precise bombing mission. The pilots did their jobs: They flew for 37 hours and hit their targets, for the first time dropping 14 massive 'bunker buster' bombs in combat. Now analysts, using complex measuring devices of soil disturbances, atmospheric dust, debris from bomb craters and electronic intercepts of Iranian conversations, among other data, are assessing the remaining risk of a reconstituted nuclear threat. It could take months — or forever — to have absolute confidence or unanimity in a conclusion. Their job is to provide a continuous flow of intelligence to the commander in chief and his advisers so they can decide what to do next. The slippery slope here is for the president and his team to jump to conclusions that the strike 'obliterated' anything. Today Trump also said of Iran: 'I don't see them getting back involved in the nuclear business anymore. I think they've had it.' But the independent International Atomic Energy Agency reports Iran most likely moved its highly enriched uranium to other underground locations before the U.S. strike. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told me last Friday the United States could bomb Iran's nuclear program but not its knowledge. And now Iran is still insisting on its right to continue enriching uranium, despite never having explained why it needed to enrich nuclear fuel to near-weapons grade 60% purity — far beyond what is required for peaceful use. Late Wednesday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, in what appeared to rebalance the debate, issued a statement that the CIA can confirm 'credible intelligence' indicating Iran's nuclear program has been 'severely damaged' by the U.S. strikes, destroying several nuclear facilities that would take years to rebuild. He did not say Iran had given up its nuclear aspirations or could not rebuild. If Trump and his team want political spin instead of honest, if preliminary, intelligence, they will end up getting sources like the agent code-named ' Curveball,' who said Iraq had developed biological weapons, leading the CIA director to call it a 'slam dunk.' That is how presidents mistakenly launch forever wars. , by Dan De Luce 🎙️Here's the Scoop This week, NBC News launched ' Here's the Scoop,' a new evening podcast that brings you a fresh take on the day's top stories in 15 minutes or less. In today's episode, host Yasmin Vossoughian talks with national security correspondent Courtney Kube about the intelligence assessments after the United States' strikes on Iran. Listen to the full episode here →
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Trump slaps NYC's democratic socialist mayoral primary winner Zohran Mamdani with new nickname
President Donald Trump branded the Democrats ' new nominee for New York mayor a 'communist lunatic,' posting about the 'radical' Zohran Mamdani following his stunning win in the Tuesday's primary. The post, on Trump's Truth Social platform, made clear Republicans are eager to highlight the self-described Democratic Socialist to try to make him a new national face of the Democrats, just as Trump got mileage by repeatedly tearing into 'the squad' following the election of the outspoken left wingers. One squad member, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, was a key backer for Mamdani, who was also supported by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. 'It's finally happened, the Democrats have crossed the line. Zohran Mamdani, a 100% Communist Lunatic, has just won the Dem Primary, and is on his way to becoming Mayor,' Trump wrote. 'We've had Radical Lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous. He looks TERRIBLE, his voice is grating, he's not very smart, he's got AOC+3, Dummies ALL, backing him, and even our Great Palestinian Senator, Cryin' Chuck Schumer, is groveling over him. Yes, this is a big moment in the History of our Country!' Trump has repeatedly tagged Schumer, a Jewish longtime supporter of Israel, as a 'Palestinian senator.' His remark that Mamdani is 'on his way' would appear to count out current Mayor Eric Adams, who is seeking reelection as an independent. The Justice Department called a halt to a criminal prosecution of Adams soon after Trump took office this year and put in new leadership. Mamdani, 33, who calls himself a Democratic socialist, also termed himself 'Trump's worst nightmare,' and ran on a platform of making New York more affordable with things like free bus service, corporate tax hikes, and affordable housing initiatives. He said in the Democratic debate: 'I am Donald Trump 's worst nightmare, as a progressive, Muslim immigrant who actually fights for the things I believe in.' Party progressives, who have been stewing over losses and griping over the party's Old Guard and aging leadership, helped deliver a win even as former President Bill Clinton and other establishment figures backed former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo resigned in 2021 while facing multiple accusations of sexual harassment, which he denied. Trump fired off the post as he made his way back to the US on Air Force One after a NATO summit where he tore into CNN as 'fake news' over a leaked Iran bomb damage assessment, and vowed to punish Spain in trade talks over its stance on military spending. Trump was still in a New York state of mind in a subsequent post, where he went after another younger Democrat, Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas, 44. She has regularly taken on Trump, while drawing controversy clashing with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene or when using foul language, like when she said ''I'm the one that's supposed to make the F-ing decision on bombing Iran.' Trump jokingly offered a suggested on how to bring Democrats 'back in play.' 'After years of being left out in the cold, including suffering one of the Greatest Losses in History, the 2024 Presidential Election, the Democrats should nominate Low IQ Candidate, Jasmine Crockett, for President, and AOC+3 should be, respectively, Vice President, and three High Level Members of the Cabinet – Added together with our future Communist Mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani, and our Country is really SCREWED!'
