Trump to meet New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Friday: What's on agenda?

Trump to meet New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Friday: What's on agenda?

US President Donald Trump agreed to meet New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Friday, November 21.

In a post on the Truth social media platform, Trump said, “Communist Mayor of New York City, Zohran ‘Kwame' Mamdani, has asked for a meeting.”

“We have agreed that this meeting will take place at the Oval Office on Friday, November 21st. Further details to follow!,” Trump said.

The potential face-to-face could represent a detente for the Republican president and Democratic political star, who have cast each other as political foils.

Trump-Mamdani meet: What's on agenda?

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani had said on Monday that he hopes to meet with President Donald Trump to find ways the political polar opposites can work together on the central focus of his winning campaign: affordability.

The Democrat had earlier confirmed that his team had reached out to the White House to set up a possible meeting with Trump.

Trump told reporters Sunday night that he planned meet with Mamdani, saying "we'll work something out" as he prepared to fly back to Washington after spending the weekend in Florida.

Mamdani critiques Trump

The mayor-elect had earlier said after visiting Part of the Solution, or POTS, “The president ran a campaign where he spoke about a promise to deliver cheaper groceries, a promise to reduce the cost of living."

“We are seeing his actions and that of his administration in Washington leading to the exact opposite effect for New Yorkers," he added.

Mamdani also criticised Trump's efforts to cut funding to the food aid program known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, during the federal government shutdown.

He vowed to “protect” New Yorkers from a “federal administration that would rather starve the people of this city, than serve the people of this city.”

Meanwhile, Trump has for months slammed Mamdani, falsely labeling him as a “communist” and predicting the ruin of his hometown if the democratic socialist was elected.

Trump also threatened to deport Mamdani, who was born in Uganda and became a naturalised American citizen in 2018, and to pull federal money from the city.

Trump has spoken more about affordability following the November election, when Republicans lost badly in Georgia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia. But he and Republicans insist the economy has never been stronger.

In a social media post Friday, Trump even declared the GOP is the "Party of Affordability!”

Meanwhile, Mamdani has risen from an obscure state lawmaker representing Queens to a symbol of the resistance against Trump in just a few short months.

The 34-year-old upset former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in June's Democratic primary then trounced him and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa in the general election.

During his victory speech earlier this month, Mamdani said he wanted New York to show the country how to defeat the president.

He's also talked about “Trump-proofing” New York once he takes office in January while also promising to work with anyone, including the president, if it benefited New Yorkers.

(With inputs from Associated Press)

Source: LiveMint
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