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Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Can Zohran Mamdani's Volunteer Army Pull Off An Election Day Upset?
This article was produced in partnership with THE CITY, a nonprofit newsroom covering New York City. On a glum Wednesday evening recently, most New Yorkers were tucked away in their apartments, avoiding the persistent drizzle. This is exactly the scenario Mohit Sani and Dylan Halper were hoping for. Halper drums a cheery knock on the door of an Upper East Side apartment. A woman named Maria steps out, pushing her yapping dog behind her. 'My name is Dylan, and this is Mohit. We're volunteers with Zohran Mamdani's campaign for mayor,' Halper begins. Just 18 years old but already a canvassing veteran, Halper is partnered up with Sani, a first-timer, so Halper takes the lead. 'Democrat or Republican?' Maria asks skeptically. She's never heard of Mamdani before. 'Democrat,' Halper reassures her, 'he wants to freeze the rent for rent-stabilized tenants.' 'That's me!' she exclaims. Soon, Maria says the magic words: 'He's got my vote.' She even thanks the two volunteers for coming. Halper and Sani are among the thousands of volunteers who are aiming to elect the 33-year-old Mamdani as the next mayor of New York City. A state Assembly member from Queens and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Mamdani is running on a platform of affordability: free buses, city-run grocery stores, universal child care and a rent freeze. So far, he's beaten expectations, emerging from a pack of progressives as a strong number two in the polls. His progressive campaign plank, delivered via slick social media videos, earned him support from the 'terminally online.' And he's maxed out his campaign contributions with individual donors: Over 27,000 people have donated to his campaign — 12,000 more than city Comptroller Brad Lander, the candidate with the next highest number of donors. To his supporters, Mamdani is a young Bernie Sanders or a socialist Barack Obama. But to his detractors, he is inexperienced, a 'show pony,' a nepo baby and even an antisemite. If elected, Mamdani would be the first Muslim mayor of New York, and his views on what he unapologetically refers to as a genocide in Gaza have made him vulnerable to attacks from pro-Israel candidates — the mainstream position for NYC politicians, who have made visits to Israel part and parcel of the job. And he's still lagging former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has been polling first in the contest before he even entered it and has maintained a solid lead since, although a recent Emerson poll has Mamdani closing the gap to single digits in the final round of a ranked choice voting tally. Cuomo has raised the most money and is backed by well-funded local super PACs called independent expenditure groups. But the Mamdani campaign is banking on one thing to set them apart: their ground game. According to the campaign, nearly 30,000 people have signed up to canvass, and they've knocked on more than 750,000 doors. Mamdani has called it 'the largest volunteer operation in NYC history.' It's certainly the largest one happening this election cycle. Mamdani's canvassers are in every borough, every night of the week. It can be a thankless task. In the city, volunteers must work their way into apartment buildings, past doormen and buzzer systems — often only to find themselves on the ground floor of one of New York's infamous walk-ups. And more often than not, no one is home. But that does not discourage Halper and Sani. Halper, a member of the DSA like Mamdani, is inspired by the candidate's vision for New York City. But like many other volunteers, he's not immune to the pull of something much more tangible — merch. All Mamdani volunteers receive a 'ZetroCard' — it looks like a MetroCard, but with spaces on the back to mark how many times they've canvassed. Halper has heard that if he fills out the card fast enough, he'll get a poster — a coveted keepsake that he can't get anywhere else. In fact, none of the campaign's swag is available for purchase — a result of New York City's campaign finance laws, according to Mamdani spokesperson Andrew Epstein. It's turned Zohran-branded items into cult collectibles — like vibrant yellow bandanas decorated with classic NYC iconography such as pigeons and hot dogs — worn by volunteers or tied onto their tote bags. And the only way to get one is to show up — something the campaign makes very easy to do. 'I've thought about volunteering for other things, and no one replies to your emails, or you have to apply and go do this thing, and then they only have one shift a week — and it's when you work,' said Anna Henderson, 25. But the Mamdani signups are simple and numerous: 'When I decided to do it, I just clicked on a day I could go in my neighborhood and just went,' Henderson said. Now, she's a seasoned Lower East Side canvasser. The low barrier to entry — and the opportunity to canvass in your own neighborhood — has benefits and drawbacks. On one hand, volunteers can pull in their own neighborhood-specific information, like a local bus that was free due to Mamdani's legislation. On the other, it leaves some neighborhoods like Williamsburg and Astoria canvass-dense, while the entire South Bronx has no canvasses at all. One field lead in The Bronx, Maxwell Dickinson, ventured out on a Saturday afternoon with a diverse group of volunteers, including multiple people over 40, a vital demographic Mamdani needs but has not yet cornered. Originally from Miami, Dickinson now lives in Riverdale. He likes to open his canvassing conversations with Mamdani's free bus platform and mentions universal child care if he sees a kid in the apartment. 'Personally, I've never mentioned that he's in the DSA, especially being from Miami,' Dickinson said, referring to that city's socialism-skeptical Cuban population. 'But maybe that's me being paranoid.' The Bronx canvassers know that their borough is being underserved. Over coffee and pancakes at a diner, they chat after the canvass about ways to expand their operation. One volunteer said she thinks Parkchester would be receptive to Mamdani because of its large Bengali population. Another suggested that the campaign partner with local organizations to help get the word out. 'You need people who are from there,' Dickinson agreed. Mamdani is following in the footsteps — literally — of another NYC Democratic Socialist: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In 2018, Ocasio-Cortez touted her ground game as essential to her defeat of incumbent Rep. Joseph Crowley. Her worn-down shoes, once displayed in a Cornell museum, became a symbol of how speaking to people face-to-face could make the difference for underdog candidates. (Ocasio-Cortez has not yet made an endorsement in the mayoral race.) But Ocasio-Cortez had to mobilize voters in her district in The Bronx and Queens only; Mamdani needs to reach people across the five boroughs. The turnout for the congressional primary was also incredibly low — at only 11.8% of registered Democratic voters — so the supporters Ocasio-Cortez reached through her door-knocking had an outsized effect. Because Mamdani's canvasses are mostly available in neighborhoods where many volunteers live, it's easy to see where his voter base lies: Bushwick and Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, the East Village in Manhattan and Astoria in Queens offer the most frequent canvass opportunities at five days a week. But the younger, often transplant-heavy population of those neighborhoods may not actually turn out for the election. In 2021, the west side of Manhattan — from Greenwich Village up to Columbia University — had some of the highest voter turnout at between 30% to 40%, whereas Bushwick in Brooklyn saw around 14%. Plus, younger voters are notorious for staying home: Only 18% of registered Dems between 18 and 29 voted in the 2021 mayoral primary, compared to over double that percentage for 70- to 79-year-olds. The median age of a New York primary voter is 54. Some Mamdani organizers are trying to change that. At first, Myesha Choudry canvassed for Mamdani everywhere from Hillside, Queens, to Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, to Staten Island. She was especially inspired by her conversations with small business owners in Jackson Heights. 'I was literally speaking about New York City politics in Bangla, in my native language, to New Yorkers who had been here for decades and decades,' she said. But unlike those she spoke to, Choudry wanted to reach people who haven't lived in the city long enough to get a feel for local politics — and may not plan to stay long enough to care. 'I feel like it's so important for young adults who have been living the dream in New York to uplift New York as well,' explained Choudry. To get young New Yorkers off of their phones and into their communities, she was part of creating Hot Girls 4 Zohran. The organization, which is not affiliated with the campaign, hosts picnics, postering sessions, raves, fundraisers and, of course, canvasses. Bright and early on a Sunday morning, 15 of the Hot Girls chatted and cheered as they made their way down Central Park West, papering lampposts with pink posters that paired a Mamdani plank with an instruction not to rank Cuomo — a position the official canvassers take, as well. 'Cuomo's literally hiding from New Yorkers because he knows if he's confronted about his platform, he's screwed,' one said, taping a poster. Cuomo has appeared at very few candidate forums, and is not taking an on-the-street campaign approach. 'I saw something like 'New York deserves a hot mayor,' and that's true. Hot girls deserve a hot mayor.' Compared to Mamdani and most of the field, Cuomo has avoided many public appearances, and for some, the sexual harassment allegations that drove him out of office — which Cuomo continues to deny — may be disqualifying. But his campaign has amassed a formidable slate of boosters. Cuomo has picked up major endorsements from large unions — even those who called for his resignation in 2021 — whose money, influence and members go a long way in city elections. He's also focused on courting Black clergy members in a bid to win over a demographic that helped propel Mayor Eric Adams to victory last cycle. 'The benefits of what he's doing is to maintain a frontrunner status — to not let opponents attack you personally,' explained political consultant Hank Sheinkopf. 'They're empty voices talking into a vacuum, and he's not responding to them, which makes them less consequential.' Of course, the canvassers want Mamdani to win. And increasingly, at least to the volunteers, his campaign seems like less of a long shot. 'I am not under any illusions that he has it in the bag,' said Henderson from the Lower East Side. 'But I don't think it's impossible. It doesn't feel like a lost cause,' she said. 'I guess I'm canvass-pilled.' After his first time canvassing, the experience on the Upper East Side has left Sani more energized than when he began. 'I look at my past self, and I see someone who watched John Oliver, watched 'The Daily Show,' watched Hasan Minhaj, and I felt politically active — but when I look back, I did nothing,' Sani mused. 'I was angry all day, but nothing happened from that anger.' 'Now, I do not watch John Oliver, I do not watch 'The Daily Show,' I do not watch Hasan Minhaj. And I'm a thousand times more politically active,' he continued. 'And then I can go to bed at night, and I'm not stressed existentially about it.' But inspiring 29,000 canvassers may not be enough. With early voting starting on June 14 and primary day just three weeks away, the volunteer army still has a lot of work to do to inspire voters — and it's running out of time. Inside the cramped vestibule of an Upper East Side apartment, Sani hits the buzzer. He's pushed a few so far, with no answer. But this time, a garbled voice comes from the other side, asking: Who's there? 'I'm here to talk about Zohran,' Sani says, rushing through the words. But the voice on the other end is confused: 'What?' 'I'm here to talk to tenants about Zohran Mamdani?' Sani tries again. No acknowledgement. One last try: 'I'm here to talk about the election?' 'Oh,' says the voice on the other end, sounding disappointed. 'You woke me up. I was sleeping.' 'I'm sorry for waking you up,' Sani says. He's genuinely contrite and, turning to Halper, asks, 'Did I do something wrong?'
Al Manar
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Manar
Haaretz Analysis: No State Has Ever Succeeded in Subjugating Yemen
Despite years of military campaigns by regional and global powers, Yemen's defiant resistance remains unbroken—and now the Israeli occupation finds itself entangled in the same costly struggle. In an article titled 'No State Has Ever Subjugated the Yemenis—So Why Does 'Israel' Keep Trying?' published in Haaretz, writer Yishai Halper examines the persistence of Yemen's armed response to the Israeli occupation, particularly since October 7, 2023, when the Yemeni Armed Forces began launching missiles in support of Gaza. In his article, Halper writes that 'shortly after October 7, 2023, when Yemenis began launching missiles toward Israel in support of Gaza, many dismissed them as 'nothing more than unintelligent warmongers operating on Iran's behalf.'' However, he adds, 'More than a year and a half later, Yemenis are no longer seen as an oddity: unlike other countries in the region, they continue to fire rockets at 'Israel,' have issued serious threats of a large-scale blockade, and—most importantly—are clearly not intimidated by air force strikes.' According to Halper, the Zionist public is only now beginning to grasp the depth of Yemeni resilience—something long recognized by experts. Anbal Nissim Lofton, a Yemen specialist and research fellow at the Moshe Dayan Center and the Forum for Regional Thinking, notes that analysts have studied Yemen's extraordinary endurance for years. She poses a central question: 'How has an armed group not only withstood repeated regional upheavals and military pressure but also escalated its attacks on Israel?' In his Hebrew-language article, Halper identifies three core factors behind this resilience: geography, experience, and mindset. In his analysis, Zionist Haaretz writer Yishai Halper uses insights from Dr. Elisabeth Kendall and Anbal Nissim Lofton extensively. Dr. Elisabeth Kendall, a Yemen expert and head of Girton College at the University of Cambridge, explains that 'the Houthis' strongholds in Yemen's northern highlands allow them to safeguard their leadership and conceal weapon systems.' 'Just open a map of Yemen and you'll see they control areas that are extremely difficult to reach—including the mountainous Saada governorate,' she argues. Kendall also emphasizes their extensive military experience, saying that 'the group has spent more than two decades fighting some of the region's most powerful armies and has survived tens of thousands of airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition.' According to Kendall, the Yemeni fighters have shown a notable tolerance for losses. After witnessing the US withdrawals from Iraq and Afghanistan, they no longer fear their adversaries and maintain a deep conviction that God is on their side. Anbal Nissim Lofton, a research fellow at the 'Moshe Dayan Center and the Forum for Regional Thinking,' adds that targeted assassinations—the Israeli occupation army's preferred tactic—are unlikely to work in Yemen. She explains that the Yemeni Armed Forces operate with a decentralized command structure composed of small, semi-autonomous units, making leadership elimination ineffective. Lofton notes that past assassinations carried out by Saudi Arabia and the United States failed to shift the balance. 'Dismantling this movement will not be easy because it is a systematically organized force that has operated for over a decade,' she says. From a military standpoint, Lofton concludes that airstrikes alone are unlikely to succeed. 'This isn't a conflict that will be resolved by military force alone. A viable political settlement must be offered to anti-Houthi factions—one that motivates them to act against the group.' Lofton also highlights the strategic miscalculations in Israel's approach. She points out that the Israeli military's reliance on manned aircraft instead of drones or missiles significantly increases operational costs. Strikes on the port of Hudaydah, she warns, are unlikely to break the Houthis' hold, as the port is a vital lifeline for Yemen's civilian population. As a result, attacks there are inherently limited by humanitarian constraints. Halper further notes that cost is a central factor often overlooked. He recalls that one reason US President Donald Trump agreed to halt offensive operations in Yemen was the overwhelming financial burden—nearly $1 billion in the first month alone, according to US security sources cited by CNN. 'Israeli operations face similar challenges. Without aircraft carriers in the Gulf, each strike demands long-distance flights, extensive fuel consumption, logistics, and maintenance—bringing the cost of every mission into the millions of shekels,' Halper concludes.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
DOD closes think tank arm marred by 'inefficiency' and criticized by GOP for ties to Trump-Russia probe
The Department of Defense has dissolved its Office of Net Acquisition – a think tank-like arm of the Pentagon that Republicans have claimed was involved in the Trump-Russia investigation. Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell said civilian employees within the office would be "reassigned to mission-critical roles" as the DOD established a plan to rebuild the office "in alignment with the Department's strategic priorities." The office is meant to provide long-term strategic analysis within DOD, but it has become a target of Republicans who claim it has engaged in "projects unrelated to its mission." "Praise the Lord. This wise move saves American taxpayers over 20 million dollars a year," Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said in a statement. Pentagon Calls Mark Milley 'Corpulent' As It Kicks Off Review Of Physical Fitness And Grooming Standards He called the office "wasteful and ineffective." Read On The Fox News App The office in recent years has been focused on strategizing a potential war with China. It championed a strategy known as "AirSea Battle," where a blinding campaign against the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of stealth bombers and submarines would take out China's long-range surveillance before a naval assault. But Grassley has for years scrutinized ONA's contracting practices. ONA has failed to produce classified net assessments for years, with whistleblowing analyst Adam Lovinger once complaining in emails to Director James Baker that the office seemed to attract overpriced academic-style papers instead of classified net assessments. "On the issue of quality, more than once I have heard our contractor studies labeled 'derivative,' 'college-level,' and based heavily on secondary sources," Lovinger wrote in a September 2016 email. "One of our contractor studies was literally cut and pasted from a World Bank report." Lovinger had complained about questionable government contracts awarded to Stefan Halper, an FBI informant who spied on the Trump campaign in 2016. A DOD inspector general's report later found that Halper had failed to properly document the research he did as a contractor on four studies valued at $1 million. The four contracts, spanning from 2012 to 2016, were meant to encompass relations between the U.S., Russia, China and India. Secretary Hegseth Says The Dod Does Not Do 'Climate Change Crap' The report found that Halper had not provided proof of any meetings he had or locations he had visited as part of his studies. "ONA personnel could not provide us any evidence that Professor Halper visited any of these locations, established an advisory group, or met with any of the specific people listed in the statement of work." For a study on what China relations could look like in 2030, Halper had proposed travel to London and Tokyo. "The contract was fixed price based on the acceptance of the deliverables and did not require Professor Halper to submit travel receipts. ONA personnel could not provide documentation that Professor Halper traveled for this contract." Contracts show that Halper listed a Russian intelligence official as a consultant for an ONA project, the same intelligence official who was listed as a source in the Trump dossier used to spy on Carter Page. He was in contact with Page and former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos, "raising questions about whether Halper used U.S. taxpayer dollars to seek connections with Trump campaign officials," according to Grassley. Halper was also a confidential human source for the FBI's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 elections who recorded conversations with officials from the campaign. The senator claims that ONA has stonewalled on his inquiries about Halper's relations to the Trump-Russia probe. Senator Jack Reed, D-R.I., top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, called the office's closing "shortsighted," adding that it would "undermine our ability to prepare for future conflicts."Original article source: DOD closes think tank arm marred by 'inefficiency' and criticized by GOP for ties to Trump-Russia probe
Fox News
14-03-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
DOD closes think tank arm marred by 'inefficiency' and criticized by GOP for ties to Trump-Russia probe
The Department of Defense has dissolved its Office of Net Acquisition – a think tank-like arm of the Pentagon that Republicans have claimed was involved in the Trump-Russia investigation. Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell said civilian employees within the office would be "reassigned to mission-critical roles" as the DOD established a plan to rebuild the office "in alignment with the Department's strategic priorities." The office is meant to provide long-term strategic analysis within DOD, but it has become a target of Republicans who claim it has engaged in "projects unrelated to its mission." "Praise the Lord. This wise move saves American taxpayers over 20 million dollars a year," Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said in a statement. He called the office "wasteful and ineffective." The office in recent years has been focused on strategizing a potential war with China. It championed a strategy known as "AirSea Battle," where a blinding campaign against the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of stealth bombers and submarines would take out China's long-range surveillance before a naval assault. But Grassley has for years scrutinized ONA's contracting practices. ONA has failed to produce classified net assessments for years, with whistleblowing analyst Adam Lovinger once complaining in emails to Director James Baker that the office seemed to attract overpriced academic-style papers instead of classified net assessments. "On the issue of quality, more than once I have heard our contractor studies labeled 'derivative,' 'college-level,' and based heavily on secondary sources," Lovinger wrote in a September 2016 email. "One of our contractor studies was literally cut and pasted from a World Bank report." Lovinger had complained about questionable government contracts awarded to Stefan Halper, an FBI informant who spied on the Trump campaign in 2016. A DOD inspector general's report later found that Halper had failed to properly document the research he did as a contractor on four studies valued at $1 million. The four contracts, spanning from 2012 to 2016, were meant to encompass relations between the U.S., Russia, China and India. The report found that Halper had not provided proof of any meetings he had or locations he had visited as part of his studies. "ONA personnel could not provide us any evidence that Professor Halper visited any of these locations, established an advisory group, or met with any of the specific people listed in the statement of work." For a study on what China relations could look like in 2030, Halper had proposed travel to London and Tokyo. "The contract was fixed price based on the acceptance of the deliverables and did not require Professor Halper to submit travel receipts. ONA personnel could not provide documentation that Professor Halper traveled for this contract." Contracts show that Halper listed a Russian intelligence official as a consultant for an ONA project, the same intelligence official who was listed as a source in the Trump dossier used to spy on Carter Page. He was in contact with Page and former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos, "raising questions about whether Halper used U.S. taxpayer dollars to seek connections with Trump campaign officials," according to Grassley. Halper was also a confidential human source for the FBI's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 elections who recorded conversations with officials from the campaign. The senator claims that ONA has stonewalled on his inquiries about Halper's relations to the Trump-Russia probe. Senator Jack Reed, D-R.I., top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, called the office's closing "shortsighted," adding that it would "undermine our ability to prepare for future conflicts."
