NYC's Mamdani Borrowed a Key Theme From Trump

The state lawmaker who upended New York City politics this week is a democratic socialist described as a "Communist Lunatic" by President Trump, reports the Guardian. But in an interview with the New York Times, Zohran Mamdani says his successful mayoral campaign in the Democratic primary drew a key bit of inspiration from Trump's. In visiting parts of the city where Trump won in November, Mamdani said he realized voters there were won over by Trump's promise to make things more affordable.

• "Both Donald Trump and our campaign can see the disillusionment in politics, the inability for so many to celebrate crumbs that cannot feed themselves and their families," Mamdani tells the newspaper. "The difference is that Trump seeks to exploit this sentiment with no actual desire to address it."

The 33-year-old state assemblyman, who would become the city's first Muslim mayor if elected in November, has promised a slew of related initiatives, from free bus rides, to universal health care, to rent freezes. "We've had Radical Lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous," Trump wrote after his primary win. Mamdani now has the inside track to a November win, but he still might face incumbent Eric Adams and primary opponent Andrew Cuomo as independent candidates, notes USA Today.