Key moments from cordial Trump-Mamdani Oval Office news conference
The surprisingly cordial Oval Office meeting between Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist mayor-elect of New York City, and Donald Trump, the Queens native who tried and failed to keep him from being elected, just concluded.
Despite the best efforts of a slate of correspondents from pro-Trump outlets selected by the White House to ask the pair questions, Trump and Mamdani refused repeated attempts to goad the two men into conflict.
Here are some of the key moments:
Mamdani said that his meeting with the president was “productive” and “focused on the place of shared admiration and love – which is New York City and the need to deliver affordability to New Yorkers”.
Trump repeatedly stepped in to defend Mamdani from hostile questioning from outlets like the New York Post and Fox News, When Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich pressed Mamdani about whether he considers Trump to be a “fascist”, the president offered the mayor-elect an unusual life raft. “That’s OK,” Trump said while tapping Mamdani’s arm. “You can just say it, it’s easier than explaining it.”
When the same Fox correspondent tried to frame Mamdani as a hypocrite for flying to the meeting from New York instead of taking a train, which is better for the environment, Trump said “I’ll stick up for you” and pointed out that it is much faster to fly and the mayor-elect is busy.
When asked by a reporter whether he would live in New York under Mamdani’s leadership, Trump said “absolutely”. “We agree on a lot more than I would have thought,” Trump said. “I want him to do a great job, and we’ll help them do a great job.”
For his part, Mamdani was relentlessly focused on the issue of making New York a more fair and affordable place to live, refusing to be knocked off course even by questions from the Pizzagate conspiracist Jack Posobiec who falsely accused Mamdani of planning to tax white New Yorkers more than New Yorkers of color.
Trump wished Mamdani success in running the city he called home: “I think he wants to make it greater than ever before, and if he can, we’ll be out there cheering.”
Trump stressed that he admired Mamdani’s political campaign and distanced himself from how own previously vitriolic denunciations of the democratic socialist as a communist. “I think he’s different, and that can be in a very positive way”, Trump said. “He has a chance to do something really great for New York … we’re going to be helping him”.
Asked by a reporter if he agrees with his Republican ally Elise Stefanik’s characterization of Mamdani as a “jihadist”, Trump dismisses that as campaign rhetoric and says: “I met with a man who’s a very rational person”.
Trump tried hard to attach himself to Mamdani’s focus on affordability. “I congratulated him, and we talked about some things in very strong common like housing and getting housing built, and food and prices,” Trump said. While the president has insisted for months that prices have gone down during his administration, a false claim that is contradicted by government data, his sagging poll numbers make it plain that the public is not buying this big lie. Having previously said that he didn’t want to hear the word “affordability” again, casting is as “a Democratic hoax”, Trump spent much of the appearance with Mamdani stressing that this is one of their shared concerns.
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Updated at 23.01 CET
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Mamdani and Trump bond over FDR, New Deal president attacked as a socialist by Republicans
At one point during the exchange with reporters in the Oval Office, Zohran Mamdani took a moment to mention that he appreciated seeing a painting of another New York president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, among the portraits in Donald Trump’s White House.
“One thing I also appreciated is in our meeting to appreciate a portrait of FDR, and the incredible work that was done with the New Deal, and also in thinking about what it can look like when the federal government and New York City government work together to deliver affordability, it can be transformative,” Mamdani said.
Trump then took credit for selecting the “great portrait of FDR” hanging in the cabinet room he redecorated. “When the mayor saw that portrait, he said, ‘Sir, do you mind if I have a picture taken by that? It’s an amazing portrait.’”
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Updated at 23.47 CET
Joseph Gedeon
Donald Trump and Zohran Mamdani, the New York City mayor-elect, walked out of their meeting on Friday afternoon with an unlikely alliance, agreeing to work together on housing, food prices and cost-of-living concerns that have defined both their political appeals to working-class voters.
“We agreed a lot more than I would have thought,” Trump said in the Oval Office, sometimes jumping in to shield Mamdani from aggressive questioning from the press.
The sit-down – which many had anticipated would be contentious, given months of intense rhetoric in which Trump branded Mamdani a “communist lunatic” – instead produced camaraderie, warm words and concrete pledges of cooperation between the Republican president and the self-described democratic socialist who secured a commanding electoral victory earlier at the beginning of November with over 50% of the vote.
“I feel very confident that he can do a very good job,” Trump said after the meeting, offering praise for his ideological opposite. “The better he does, the happier I am. I will say there’s no difference in party. There’s no difference in anything, and we’re going to be helping him to make everybody’s dream come true, having a strong and very safe New York.”
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Standing next to Trump, Mamdani describes his conversations with Trump voters in Queens
During their Oval Office exchange with reporters, which was staged in a familiar fashion for this White House, with Donald Trump seated behind his desk and his guest forced to stand, Zohran Mamdani referred to conversations he had, last November, with Queens residents who voted for Trump in the 2024 election.
Mamdani even said that he spoke with a pharmacist who told him that Trump’s father, Fred, had been a customer.
Some of those conversations, days after the election, were recorded and featured in a social media video posted on Mamdani’s YouTube channel before he launched his mayoral campaign. In the video, voters told Mamdani that Trump’s promise to lower the cost of living was a major factor in their decision. He told them that he planned to run for mayor on a platform of freezing rents, making buses free and making universal child care a reality.
Here is that November 2024 video:
Zohran Mamdani’s conversations with Trump voters in November 2024.Share
Several observers of the meeting between Trump and Mamdani pointed out on social media that, by embracing the popular young mayor-elect instead of confronting him, Donald Trump seemed to upend well-laid Republican plans to make the democratic socialist the face of the Democratic party, as strategy to cast Democrats as extremists.
John DeLillo, a writer, posted a satirical version of the disconnect on social media with this imaginary dialogue between the House speaker, Mike Johnson, and the president:
mike johnson: we are going to make zohran mamdani the face of the democratic party
donald trump: and what a beautiful face it is! look at that smile! we love zohran mamdani, don’t we folks
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‘Pretty sure Zohran just charmed Donald Trump into agreeing that he’s a fascist’
A close ally of New York’s mayor-elect, the city comptroller Brad Lander, responded to the Donald Trump telling Zohran Mamdani that it is fine to call him a fascist by posting on social media: “Pretty sure Zohran just charmed Donald Trump into agreeing that he’s a fascist.”
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Key moments from cordial Trump-Mamdani Oval Office news conference
The surprisingly cordial Oval Office meeting between Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist mayor-elect of New York City, and Donald Trump, the Queens native who tried and failed to keep him from being elected, just concluded.
Despite the best efforts of a slate of correspondents from pro-Trump outlets selected by the White House to ask the pair questions, Trump and Mamdani refused repeated attempts to goad the two men into conflict.
Here are some of the key moments:
Mamdani said that his meeting with the president was “productive” and “focused on the place of shared admiration and love – which is New York City and the need to deliver affordability to New Yorkers”.
Trump repeatedly stepped in to defend Mamdani from hostile questioning from outlets like the New York Post and Fox News, When Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich pressed Mamdani about whether he considers Trump to be a “fascist”, the president offered the mayor-elect an unusual life raft. “That’s OK,” Trump said while tapping Mamdani’s arm. “You can just say it, it’s easier than explaining it.”
When the same Fox correspondent tried to frame Mamdani as a hypocrite for flying to the meeting from New York instead of taking a train, which is better for the environment, Trump said “I’ll stick up for you” and pointed out that it is much faster to fly and the mayor-elect is busy.
When asked by a reporter whether he would live in New York under Mamdani’s leadership, Trump said “absolutely”. “We agree on a lot more than I would have thought,” Trump said. “I want him to do a great job, and we’ll help them do a great job.”
For his part, Mamdani was relentlessly focused on the issue of making New York a more fair and affordable place to live, refusing to be knocked off course even by questions from the Pizzagate conspiracist Jack Posobiec who falsely accused Mamdani of planning to tax white New Yorkers more than New Yorkers of color.
Trump wished Mamdani success in running the city he called home: “I think he wants to make it greater than ever before, and if he can, we’ll be out there cheering.”
Trump stressed that he admired Mamdani’s political campaign and distanced himself from how own previously vitriolic denunciations of the democratic socialist as a communist. “I think he’s different, and that can be in a very positive way”, Trump said. “He has a chance to do something really great for New York … we’re going to be helping him”.
Asked by a reporter if he agrees with his Republican ally Elise Stefanik’s characterization of Mamdani as a “jihadist”, Trump dismisses that as campaign rhetoric and says: “I met with a man who’s a very rational person”.
Trump tried hard to attach himself to Mamdani’s focus on affordability. “I congratulated him, and we talked about some things in very strong common like housing and getting housing built, and food and prices,” Trump said. While the president has insisted for months that prices have gone down during his administration, a false claim that is contradicted by government data, his sagging poll numbers make it plain that the public is not buying this big lie. Having previously said that he didn’t want to hear the word “affordability” again, casting is as “a Democratic hoax”, Trump spent much of the appearance with Mamdani stressing that this is one of their shared concerns.
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Updated at 23.01 CET
Trump dismisses his ally’s characterization of Mamdani as ‘a jihadist’ as campaign rhetoric
Asked by a reporter if he agrees with his Republican ally Elise Stefanik’s characterization of Mamdani as a “jihadist”, Trump dismisses that as campaign rhetoric and says: “No, I don’t… I met with a man who’s a very rational person”.
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Updated at 23.16 CET
Throughout this spray with the media, after his meeting with Zohran Mamdani, Trump has been exceptionally cordial.
He’s extolled how the mayor-elect “came out of nowhere” and praised his campaign and staff. Trump also defended Mamdani from adversarial lines of questioning, including being pressed by Fox News about why the mayor-elect flew to DC, and whether he believes the president to be a “fascist”. Trump even wished Mamdani success in running the city he called home: “I think he wants to make it greater than ever before, and if he can, we’ll be out there cheering.”
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Trump says he ‘absolutely’ would live in New York under Mamdani
When asked by a reporter whether he would live in New York under Mamdani’s leadership, Donald Trump says “absolutely”, after his meeting with the mayor-elect today.
“We agree on a lot more than I would have thought,” Trump said. “I want him to do a great job, and we’ll help them do a great job.”
Trump added: “I always feel very, very comfortable being in New York, and I think much more so after the meeting.”
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When Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich pressed Mamdani further about whether he considers Trump to be a “fascist”, the president offered the mayor-elect an unusual life raft. “That’s OK,” Trump said while tapping Mamdani’s arm. “You can just say it, it’s easier than explaining it.”
Donald Trump and New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani speak to members of the media as they meet in the Oval Office on Friday. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/ReutersShare
Updated at 21.59 CET
In an incredibly cordial display, Donald Trump evaded a question from a reporter about the president’s previous threats about sending troops to New York City.
“I think that we have known murderers and known drug dealers and some very bad people,” Trump said. “Actually, maybe more than anything else, [Mamdani] wants to have a safe New York … We can talk about anything you want, if you don’t have safe streets, it’s not going to be a success. So we’re going to work together.”
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Mamdani said that meeting with Trump was ‘productive’ and ‘looks forward to working together’
Mamdani said that his meeting with the president was “productive” and “focused on the place of shared admiration and love – which is New York City and the need to deliver affordability to New Yorkers”.
When answering a question from a reporter about his past criticisms of Donald Trump, including calling him a “despot”, Mamdani said that his meeting today “focused not on places of disagreement, which there are many, and also focused on the shared purpose that we have in serving New Yorkers”.
Trump, for his part, made a joke in response: “I’ve been called much worse than a despot. It’s not that insulting.” He added that Mamdani might “change his mind after we get to working together”.
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Updated at 21.53 CET
Trump says he and Mamdani had a ‘great meeting’ and congratulates mayor-elect on victory
Donald Trump welcomed the press into the Oval Office after his meeting with Zohran Mamdani, which he characterized as “great”.
“I congratulated him, and we talked about some things in very strong common like housing and getting housing built, and food and prices,” Trump said. “And the price of oil is coming way down, and anything I do is going to be good for New York.”
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Mamdani arrives at the White House
Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s mayor-elect, has arrived at the White House. The press pool note that they did not lay eyes on him. A short while ago, the White House communications director, Steven Cheung, teased members of the press waiting outside the West Wing: “Too late guys! Y’all are too slow,” he wrote on social media. However, it appears that Mamdani entered through a different entrance.
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House passes symbolic resolution to denounce ‘horrors of socialism’ ahead of Mamdani meeting at the White House
Earlier today, in a 285-98 vote, the US House of Representatives passed a resolution to denounce the “horrors of socialism”. All Republicans voted for the measure, and they were joined by 86 Democrats. The symbolic vote took place ahead of a White House meeting between Donald Trump and New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.
“This is a moral vote against an ideology that has destroyed millions and millions of families,” congresswoman Maria Salazar of Florida said on the House floor today. “Unfortunately, socialism and Marxism crushes the human soul. And it’s not just my community in Miami. It’s the rest of the hemisphere and the rest of the world.”
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Top oversight Democrats say former prince’s failure to respond to investigation interview ‘speaks volumes’
Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, issued a statement alongside another member, congressman Suhas Subramanyam, noting that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s failure to respond to the committee’s request for an interview “speaks volumes”.
“The documents we’ve reviewed, along with public records and Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s testimony, raise serious questions he must answer, yet he continues to hide,” the lawmakers said of the former prince, who was stripped of his royal titles last month. “Our work will move forward with or without him, and we will hold anyone who was involved in these crimes accountable, no matter their wealth, status, or political party. We will get justice for the survivors.”
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Updated at 20.53 CET
As of now, Donald Trump’s meeting with Zohran Mamdani is still closed to the press. But the president said in an interview with Fox News today that he may invite members of the media (who are covering the White House today) into the Oval Office after the pair finish their sit-down.
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Tens of thousands of people detained and deported during government shutdown
My colleagues, Will Craft, Andrew Witherspoon and José Olivares, have dug into the most recent US immigration data, and report that tens of thousands of people in operations nationwide during the federal government shutdown.
In total, ICE arrested and detained approximately 54,000 people and deported approximately 56,000 people during the shutdown.
The arrests have led to a marked increase in the number of people held in immigration jails, with more than 65,000 currently detained nationwide – the highest number of people in immigration detention ever.
While other federal employees were furloughed and without pay and many public services were limited or unavailable, officials with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) kept up enforcement operations nationwide, in line with the Trump administration’s aggressive anti-immigration agenda. This included detaining thousands of people with no criminal record.
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