Khaberni - American President Donald Trump welcomed elected New York Mayor Zehran Mumdani at the White House, describing the meeting as very fruitful and constructive. Mumdani, on his part, stated that he appreciates the meeting with President Trump and is looking forward to working together. He added that they discussed their shared goals. The meeting of the two men face to face occurred for the first time after an exchange of hostilities and mutual antagonistic rhetoric in recent months.
In the Oval Office, Trump (79 years old) told reporters after the Friday evening meeting, that he believes Mumdani (34 years old) will be an "excellent mayor" for New York City. The American President added that they did not discuss whether Mumdani would make a decision to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for committing war crimes in Gaza - should he visit New York.
Trump praised Mumdani who stood beside him while the president was seated at his desk; after denying him the label of "jihadist," he described him as "a very rational man who is very keen to see New York great again."
The American President added that the meeting with Mumdani was surprising to him, noting that "we may disagree on the means but we agree on the end." Trump clarified in this context that some of the ideas of the elected Mayor Mumdani are the same ideas he holds, "We have a common denominator. We want to improve the conditions of our city that we love."
Trump confirmed that Mumdani has the opportunity to do something great in New York and needs the support of the federal government, which he will provide, emphasizing, "I expect to help the elected Mayor Mumdani, not hurt him."
They also discussed affordable housing, grocery prices, and utilities, where Mumdani successfully leveraged the dissatisfaction resulting from inflation to win the election, just as Trump did in the 2024 elections.
The American president mentioned that they discussed the involvement of the Immigration Department in New York and the enforcement of immigration laws and their impact on the city, noting that "the better Mumdani works, the happier I will feel, and we will help him achieve everyone's dreams."
Mumdani’s Position
For his part, Mumdani, who is scheduled to officially take office next January, said he appreciates the meeting with President Trump and that he is looking forward to working together, adding that he discussed with President Trump their shared goals.
Mumdani informed President Trump about the concerns of many New Yorkers and their desire to direct taxpayer money towards their interests, also spoke about Israel committing genocide with American funding, and added that he shares the president’s "idea of allocating our money to serve our citizens."
The elected Mayor of New York added, "I discussed with the president not only our desire to follow our city's laws but to have our policies consistent at all levels." He referred in this context to discussing the issue of the Immigration Department’s involvement in New York and the enforcement of immigration law and its impact on the city.
Mumdani emphasized his political leanings during his statement to the journalists saying, "I am a socialist Democrat and have always been candid about that."
Mumdani mentioned, "What I truly appreciate about the president is that our meeting focused not only on the subjects of disagreement, which were many, but also heavily on the shared goal of serving the people of New York."
Previous Hostile Speech
During his earlier victory speech this month, Mumdani, who rose from being an obscure deputy representing Queens to becoming the elected mayor of the country's largest city in just a few months, said he wants to show the country how to defeat the president.
In the context of prior mutual accusations between them, Trump described the elected Mayor of New York City as "100% crazy communist" and "mentally unbalanced," while Mumdani described Trump's administration as "authoritarian," considering himself "Donald Trump's worst nightmare."
However, their first meeting today, Friday, at the White House focused more on their shared goals than on their explosive disagreements.
