The stakes couldn’t be higher for the Nov. 21 meeting between President Donald Trump and New York Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani at the White House.
New York Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani meets with President Trump at the White House
President Donald Trump has confirmed via Truth Social that he is meeting with New York Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani to discuss affordability and public safety.
NEW YORK — Two Queens natives who often fight in public — one the president and the other soon to be mayor of the nation’s largest city — are scheduled to meet for the first time.
The stakes couldn’t be higher for the Nov. 21 meeting between President Donald Trump and New York Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani at the White House.
Trump, a 79-year-old Republican, and Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist, are polar opposites in style and substance. But both have passionate supporters and campaigns to address issues of affordability. Mamdani’s campaign first made headlines when he addressed Trump supporters in the Bronx and Queens.
Earlier this month, Mamdani, a state lawmaker who will be sworn in on New Year’s Day, devoted part of her victory speech to speaking directly with President Trump. As mayor, he said he would stand up to Trump if he tried to send military or immigration officials to the city of 8.5 million people, where 37% of the population is foreign-born.
Trump has previously said he would arrest Mamdani and threaten to revoke his citizenship if he did not cooperate with Trump’s sweeping immigration crackdown. President Trump repeatedly and inaccurately referred to Mandani as a “communist” in a Nov. 19 announcement in Truth Social magazine about their planned meeting.
The next morning, Mamdani told reporters he was focused on fulfilling his promise to address living costs.
“That’s why we’re going back to advocating for all-affordability policies,” he said Nov. 20 at City Hall Park. “I will meet with anyone and speak with anyone as long as I can benefit New Yorkers’ economic policy.”
White House press secretary Caroline Levitt did not provide details about what would be discussed, telling reporters she did not want to get ahead of the president.
“President Trump is going to meet and talk with everyone and try to do the right thing on behalf of the American people, whether they live in a blue state or a red state,” she said. “Or the Blue City, a city that is far more left-wing than this president himself expected in his years living in New York.”
Trap of the Oval Office or space for common ground?
President Trump loves spectacle, bringing leaders into the Oval Office to publicly embarrass them. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was criticized for not wearing a suit and for not thanking the United States enough for its support.
Mr. Mamdani risks President Trump setting such a trap. But young politicians with a sure-fire message and affability may be able to avoid taking any bait from the president. Confronted with Trump’s false claims about the genocide of white farmers in his country, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa appears to have tried to avoid a diplomatic disaster by appealing to Trump with images and personal stories.
And perhaps the meeting will go well. Esther Fuchs, a professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a former adviser to then-New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, said that although Mamdani and Trump disagree, they have some things in common.
Both men were charismatic and brought new voters to the polls. They called for lowering the cost of everything from housing to food.
Of course, they are from different times and regions, but both Mr. Trump and Mr. Mamdani are from Queens. Mr. Trump grew up in Jamaica Estates, a vibrant, predominantly white suburb. Mamdani, a millennial, represents Astoria’s diverse and gentrifying left-wing stronghold.
Nevertheless, they are likely to use common ground to build a relationship.
“The most important thing for the next mayor at this point is to actually establish a relationship that will de-escalate the collision course that they’re both on right now,” Fuchs said.
Mitchell Moss, a professor at New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service and a Bloomberg advisor, said the two leaders also need to understand each other’s feelings.
“Just the idea that they can interact with their opponents is going to be a plus,” he said.
Resetting relations between New York and Washington
The meeting could give the next mayor an opportunity to reconcile the city’s position at odds with the Trump administration. During the second Trump administration, major Democratic cities faced cuts to federal funding, as well as immigration raids and the deployment of the National Guard to the streets.
Previous New York mayors, including Eric Adams and Bill de Blasio, have not had the opportunity to meet one-on-one with the U.S. president at the White House, Fuchs said. (Neither Mr. Adams nor Mr. de Blasio immediately responded to emailed requests for comment.)
Mr. Bloomberg, who served as mayor during the global financial crisis, met with Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama in the Oval Office. But Fuchs said federal funding cuts and militarized immigration raids in urban areas with large concentrations of population and employment have made New York and other cities even more at risk.
“Obviously (Mamdani) is going to advocate for New York, but it’s really important that the president recognizes that cities are the economic engine of the country,” Fuchs said.
“There is no America without New York”
The primary way the federal government interacts with local governments is by providing funding for specific programs.
President Trump has said he will cut funding to New York City. If they do so, Mamdani has vowed to fight the regime in court. But during the meeting, Mamdani could ask Trump to return federal funds that Trump has already withheld, including the $16 billion Gateway Tunnel, the nation’s largest infrastructure project that is key to the Northeast Rail Corridor, and construction of the Second Avenue subway in Manhattan.
State Sen. John Lieu, a Queens Democrat and former New York City comptroller who supported Mr. Mamdani, said the main purpose of the talks was to set the tone for cooperation.
New York is nearly financially independent, Liu said. Less than 7% of the city’s roughly $120 billion budget comes from the federal government, according to a recent state report. According to the New York Fed, New York City’s gross domestic product (GDP) will be approximately $1.286 trillion in 2023.
New York has historically sent in more money than it receives from the federal government, making it a donor state.
But the more immediate problem is the “paramilitary incursion” into the city by military and federal personnel, Liu added.
“Neither can coexist without the other,” Liu says. “New York City does not exist without America. And there is no America without New York City.”
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Contact us via email (emcuevas1@usatoday.com) or Signal (emcuevas.01).
