Key Points from Mamdani–Trump Meeting

On November 21, 79-year-old billionaire Republican President Trump affectionately and repeatedly patted Mamdani's hand. Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democratic Socialist, stood next to the seated president. Mamdani, a State Assembly member from Trump's Queens neighborhood, repeatedly mentioned Trump's performance in the 2024 presidential election in the city. After months of heated debate in the press and on social media, the heated atmosphere de-escalated. Trump once threatened to arrest Mamdani if ​​he did not support the administration's major immigration crackdown, and also threatened to withhold federal funding from New York due to Mamdani's left-wing politics. Mamdani has called Trump a fascist and, in his victory speech, declared he was ready to confront the president on issues, including immigration. (Trump has repeatedly banned visitors from Muslim-majority countries, while Mamdani would be New York City's first Muslim mayor.)

In their first meeting, Trump said he wanted Mamdani to feel comfortable in New York, while Mamdani said he was eager to work with Trump to improve affordability in their shared hometown.

Trump said, "I want to help him, not hurt him—a big help, because I want New York City to be great."

Mamdani previously told reporters, "It was a productive meeting focused on a shared admiration and love for New York City and the need to provide affordability to New Yorkers."

Here are the highlights.

Mamdani was welcomed like MBS, not threatened like Zelensky.

Trump said the press uproar surrounding Mamdani's first visit to the White House was greater than the attention given to his meetings with several foreign heads of state. But Trump has shown a knack for turning meetings with those leaders into spectacles, whether through insults or lavish praise.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was reprimanded by Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance for not wearing a suit and failing to properly thank US aid during the country's nearly four-year war with Russia. But recently, Trump hosted a lavish meeting at the White House for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MBS. When asked about US intelligence suggesting that MBS plotted the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Trump defended his guest.

Mamdani was treated like a prince.

When the press provoked them into attacking each other, neither he nor Trump succumbed to the temptation. Mamdani was asked if he considered Trump a fascist. "That's easy. It's easier than explaining. I have no problem."

Trump patted Mamdani's hand.

Surprising Areas of Agreement on Affordability

Mamdani, who initially called the meeting, had said he would discuss the high cost of living in New York with the president. Despite their differences on issues like federal funding cuts and Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the city, they took a similar approach.

Both Trump and Mamdani were elected with a focus on reducing the cost of living. Mamdani has promised to build 200,000 affordable housing units and supports allowing more market-rate housing to be built in high-income neighborhoods.

"Some of his ideas are similar to mine," the president said. "He wants to expand homes, develop plots, build apartments... People will be shocked, but I want to see the same thing."

A little over a year ago, Mamdani went viral on social media when he interviewed New Yorkers about why they voted for Trump. Microphone in hand, Mamdani visited neighborhoods in the Bronx and Queens that were mostly populated by immigrants, non-white working-class people, and where Trump had been most strongly influenced.

Mamdani asked them about their vote, or whether they had skipped the ballot box altogether. According to his posts, the common theme of their support for Trump was the cost of living. Mamdani then asked about the upcoming 2025 mayoral election.

Referring to his three-part campaign platform, Mamdani asked, "If a candidate talked about freezing rent, making buses free, and making universal child care a reality, would you support these things?" "Absolutely," one man told Mamdani, "He'd have my vote all day."

Trump spoke after a difficult week

The fun Oval Office visit with Mamdani came amid a very bad week for Trump.

Trump's poll numbers are at their lowest point in his second term.

He faced sharp rebuke from members of his own party, who, along with Democrats, were ordering the release of government files related to Jeffrey Epstein, a deceased sex offender and former Trump friend. Trump subsequently signed the bill he had once opposed.

In interactions with the press, Trump became increasingly agitated when asked about the Epstein files, or when a reporter attempted to ask MBS about Khashoggi.

Trump's smiling, slick encounter gave him a distinct identity.

"New Yorkers," Trump said. "And especially now, because I think you're really at a turning point. It could be great. Or it could go in a different direction, and I think you have a chance to make it really, really great."

Mamdani warmly noted the president's strong support for a Republican in New York in 2024.

Mamdani said, "More New Yorkers voted for President Trump in the recent presidential election because of the focus on the cost of living, and I look forward to working together to accomplish that affordability agenda." Trump and Mamdani have more shared voters than expected

The two New Yorkers discussed one thing they had in common: the voters who supported them both.

Trump said, "A lot of my voters actually vote for him."

Mamdani interrupted, "One in 10."

Trump replied, "And I have no problem with that."

According to a CBS survey, about 10% of Mamdani's voters supported Trump in the 2024 presidential election. According to the CBS analysis, in Queens, where Trump grew up and Mamdani now lives, the majority of voters went for Mamdani.

The romance between these two new friends may not last long, but their relationship has surprisingly gotten off to a good start.