A Disgraceful Performance by Trump, and a Victory for the Smooth-Talking Mamdani
Nov 22, 2025 10:00 am
By Hugh Fitzgerald
11 Comments
Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist who dislikes capitalism and hates the Jewish state, and is the mayor-elect of New York City, asked for a meeting with Donald Trump. At that point, Trump should have politely declined to invite him, and suggested instead that in the next few months, after Mamdani assumes office, they could meet in New York, perhaps at the Trump Towers. By inviting him to the White House, and then having their meeting in the Oval Office televised, Trump has boosted Mamdani’s national visibility, his perceived importance, and his political clout.
Things got worse when Mamdani was shown standing over Trump in the Oval Office, where he proceeded to lecture Trump, accusing Israel of committing “genocide” and the United States of “funding genocide.” Trump said nothing to this double calumny, apparently unable to defend either the Jewish state or his own country. More on this meeting, which for Mamdani was not at all a “trip to Canossa,” but, rather, as if he had come “to ride in triumph through Persepolis,” can be found here: “Mamdani accuses US of funding genocide by Israel during warm meeting with Trump,” by Luke Tress and Jacob Magid, Times of Israel, November 21, 2025:
US President Donald Trump says that he and visiting New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani did not discuss during their White House meeting the latter’s pledge to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he came to the Big Apple.
Standing next to Trump in the Oval Office after their private meeting, Mamdani tells reporters that when he spoke to New Yorkers who supported both Trump and him, the two main reasons given were a desire to “end forever wars” and an “end to the taxpayer dollars we had funding violations of human rights” along with the rising cost of living in the city.
Trump says he has no problem with sharing voters with Mamdani.
Asked about the Middle East, Trump reiterates that the US is pushing for the “total disarmament of Hamas.”
He also says Hezbollah remains a “problem,” but that the US is working with Lebanon to address it.
A reporter claims Mamdani has accused the US of committing a genocide in Gaza. The mayor-elect clarifies that he has “spoken about the Israeli government committing genocide and I’ve spoken about our government funding it.”
“I shared with the president in our meeting about the concern that many New Yorkers have of wanting their tax dollars to go toward the benefit of New Yorkers and their ability to afford basic dignity,” Mamdani says in response to a question. “There’s a desperate need not only for the following of human rights but also the following through on the promises we’ve made New Yorkers.”
“I appreciate all efforts toward peace,” he adds. We’re tired of seeing our tax dollars fund endless wars, and I also believe that we have to follow through on the international human rights, and I know that still today those are being violated, and that continues to be work that has to be done, no matter where we’re speaking of.”
Trump does not comment on the matter, beyond noting that he and Mamdani feel “very strongly about peace in the Middle East.”…
Trump is asked about New York Rep. Elise Stefanik’s accusation that Mamdani is a jihadist, and whether Trump agrees with that characterization.
“No, I don’t, but she’s out there campaigning and you say things sometimes during a campaign,” Trump responds. “I met with a man who’s a very rational person.”
As the meeting wraps up, Mamdani is asked about a caustic protest outside a New York City synagogue this week.
“I care very deeply about Jewish safety and I look very forward to rooting out antisemitism across the five boroughs and every New Yorker who calls the city home,” he says….
Remember, this is the man who refuses to condemn the murderous antisemitic call to “globalize the Intifada.”
“I met with a man who is a very rational person,” Trump says of Mamdani. “I’ll be cheering for him.”
“We’ve just had a great meeting, a really good, very productive meeting. One thing in common, we want this city of ours that we love to do very well. And I wanted to congratulate the mayor,” Trump tells reporters.
Trump enthused on the “great meeting” he had had with Mamdani, who had accused Trump to his face of “funding genocide.” “I met with a man who is a very rational person.” That is certainly true, Mamdani is very rational and very calculating, unlike the mercurial seat-of-the-pants Donald Trump.
And Trump summed up what he called “a great meeting” as a “really good, very productive meeting. I’ll be cheering for him.” He’ll be cheering for this implacable enemy of Israel, this malevolent creature who just accused Trump’s administration of “funding genocide,” this hater of capitalism.
What should Trump have done? He should first of all have had Mamdani not standing over him, but given him a chair while Trump was seated in a higher chair just in front of the fireplace. The optics matter. When Mamdani accused Israel of “genocide” — “I’ve spoken about the Israeli government committing genocide and about our government funding it” — Trump should have immediately responded that “No, Zohran, you’ve got it all wrong. The Israelis have been doing their best to minimize civilian casualties. Surely, Zohran, you know that the IDF has dropped millions of leaflets, sent millions of text messages, and made millions of robocalls to warn civilians away from areas, and neighborhoods, about to be targeted. They have not been committing genocide. And as for your claim that our government has been “funding genocide,” that too is simply false.”
But instead, Trump remained silent.
A disgraceful performance by Trump, and a victory for the smooth-talking jihadist, Zohran Mamdani. |
