Zohran Mamdani on his relationship with Trump and his vow to tax the rich: Full interview

[0:00] Mayor Mamdani, welcome back to Meet the Press. Thank you for having me. It's a pleasure to be [0:03] back. Well, it's wonderful to have you here to talk about your first 100 days in office. We [0:08] really appreciate the opportunity and there is a lot to cover. So let's dive right in. Let's [0:14] start big picture. You came into office. You made sweeping promises on the campaign trail. I'll name [0:20] a few. Freezing the rent, free and fast buses, universal child care. Here we are 100 days in [0:28] to your tenure as mayor. Are you still confident you can deliver on all of your promises that you [0:34] made to New Yorkers? Yes, I am. And I'm confident of that because of what we've seen over this 100 [0:39] days. On day eight, we announced a $1.2 billion agreement with Governor Kathy Hochul to put our [0:45] city on the pathway to universal child care. We are not only providing free child care for every [0:49] three-year-old in the city, we're now doing it for two-year-olds as well. By the end of our first term, [0:54] we will see every single two-year-old receiving free child care across the five boroughs of New [0:59] York City. And we're going to talk about child care and a number of your other policies. You're [1:05] also facing a $5.4 billion budget shortfall. You are required by law to balance the budget. [1:13] Are you confident you can accomplish all of the promises that you made in your first term, [1:18] in one term? So I've always said that we would accomplish all of these promises by the time that [1:22] I'm done being the mayor. I'm fully confident of doing exactly that. And as you said, we inherited [1:27] the largest fiscal crisis that the city has seen since the Great Recession. Frankly, this dwarfs even [1:32] that. When we first came into office, we were looking at $12 billion. And thanks to the work that we [1:37] did, the savings, the allocations of our reserves, the commitment from the governor, we were able to [1:43] bring that down to $5.4 billion. Now what we're seeing is the importance of not just finalizing the [1:49] city budget process, but the state budget process. And we're actually just a day from the moment when [1:54] the governor announced that we will be pursuing a pied-à-terre tax, which will be a tax on the [2:00] properties of the wealthiest of the wealthy. And we're so excited to be working with her on exactly [2:05] that because it will raise half a billion dollars for New York City and it will do so on an annual [2:10] basis. And we are going to get to taxes momentarily. But do you think you can accomplish all of your [2:16] promises to New Yorkers? Or do you think you would need a second term in order to promise [2:21] and achieve the sweeping promises you make? I'm going to just knock on wood over here for the [2:26] second term. But look, I've said time and again that when I was running for mayor, New Yorkers would [2:32] come up to me, they would say one of three things typically. They were talking about freezing the [2:36] rent, making buses fast and free, delivering universal child care. In this first hundred days, [2:41] we had six vacancies on the rent guidelines board that determines whether or not that decision will be [2:45] made. We filled all six of them. They're an independent board. They'll make their decision [2:49] this summer. When it comes to universal child care, we talked about the 1.2 billion. When it [2:53] comes to making our buses fast and free, we're already delivering on the fast. We're speeding up [2:58] buses from more than a million New Yorkers, putting back up to six minutes back into their lives [3:03] each trip. And we're doing this because we currently have the slowest buses in the United States of [3:07] America. And we're working with Albany to make those buses free. And we're confident by the time that we are [3:12] done with our administration, we will have delivered on these three central promises. [3:15] So you've got the fast part for the buses, the free part. What specifically do you think you will [3:20] have accomplished by the end of this first year? By the end of this first year, what we're going to [3:25] see is us delivering these 2,000 free child care for two-year-olds across New York City. It's going to be [3:31] 12,000 by the end of next year. Every single two-year-old by the end of four years. When it comes to our buses, [3:36] we will have sped up the process for buses for more than a million New Yorkers. What this means is [3:42] 20% increases in speed across 45 priority corridors. But buses won't be free by the end [3:48] of your first year. We're working with Albany right now, and we're still confident that there [3:52] is a part of this budget that could start that process of making buses free. We have one bus route [3:57] free in New York City right now. We're excited at the prospect of building that out before we deliver [4:02] it for every bus route. And just to be very clear, to put a fine point on this, I don't hear you [4:06] committing to being able to accomplish everything with one term. I've always been hopeful of getting [4:11] two terms, but I've always said to New Yorkers that we would accomplish everything with however much [4:16] time that we get. Days ago, you announced that your first of five planned free government-run grocery [4:23] stores will open next year in East Harlem. In response, grocery store magnate John Castamatiti says [4:30] he can't compete with city-run grocery stores selling food for free. If private grocers start [4:37] closing because of your policy, will your policy have been a failure, or do you simply see that [4:44] as the cost of achieving your grocery store plan? I just want to correct you on one thing. These are [4:48] not free groceries. These are cheaper groceries. We've always said that we would have one city-run grocery [4:54] store in each borough, and they would provide cheaper groceries, and we're going to do that by [4:58] guaranteeing it through a basket of essential items, the kinds of things that New Yorkers need from [5:03] their grocery store, but they haven't been able to budget for. We're talking about bread and eggs, [5:08] the staples that have been skyrocketing. Now, I know that grocery prices have been increasing [5:13] across the country, but they've been increasing at an even higher rate in New York City. Our goal here [5:18] is to deliver cheaper groceries to New Yorkers. That's what we want the outcome to be. John is someone [5:24] that I've had the pleasure of getting to know, someone who's been a big part of New York City [5:28] life, and I'm excited to be delivering this, and even as we may have some disagreements, [5:32] to still looking to serve New Yorkers across the five. If John Castamatitis closes some of his stores, [5:38] will that be a failure on your part? How would you see that? I will leave John's business decisions [5:43] to John, but what I will tell you is that we're talking about five grocery stores in a city that has [5:47] more than a thousand. And just to be very clear, you're saying some of these items will be cheaper [5:53] at the essentials, but not necessarily all. We're talking about the basket of essentials. We're [5:57] talking about the items that New Yorkers plan their lives around that right now they've been [6:01] getting priced out of. That's what we're going to deliver, and we're so excited because the first [6:05] city-run store, the site that we announced, it's at La Marqueta in El Barrio in East Harlem, [6:10] which is actually the same place that Fiorella LaGuardia opened a market for fruits and vegetables at lower [6:16] costs to New Yorkers back in 1936. We're continuing that legacy by delivering on something that [6:22] frankly is a non-negotiable. It's food. Let's talk about how you're going to pay for all of this. [6:28] You've worked with Governor Kathy Hochul to get some of the starting blocks in place for universal [6:33] child care, for example, which you referenced. When can New Yorkers expect to see full universal [6:40] child care? What's the timeline for that? They will see full universal child care for two-year-olds by [6:44] the end of the first term, and then in the second term we would pursue fulfilling that for one-year-olds [6:50] and those from six weeks and above. We've always said over the course of the campaign we would [6:53] deliver it for New Yorkers from the ages of six weeks to five years. What we started in these first [6:59] hundred days was fixing the system for three-year-olds. We've delivered on that. We're rolling that out [7:04] right now and then starting to deliver it for the first time in history for two-year-olds. And I just [7:08] want to go back to sometimes this feels like, you know, just checking off a box on the list that did [7:13] we do something that we talked about. The importance of doing this is also because of what it means for [7:18] New Yorkers. We're talking about $20,000 a year that a family won't have to shell out for child care [7:23] any longer because they know they can afford to raise their kid in the city they love. [7:26] And you still don't, you have an agreement with Governor Hochul on that. You don't have an [7:31] agreement with Governor Hochul on raising taxes on the wealthy yet. Will you be able to deliver on [7:37] your promise of taxing the wealthy to help pay for your programs? Absolutely. And I'm actually happy [7:43] to tell you that that pied-à-terre tax, that is an agreement that we have to tax the wealthy. Because [7:49] again, when we're talking about a pied-à-terre, this is a home that is owned here in New York City by [7:54] someone who doesn't live in New York City. And we're talking about the valuation of which [7:58] is the super rich, not just of this country, but across the world. I was just yesterday standing [8:03] in front of 220 Central Park West. And there at the penthouse was a home that Ken Griffin had bought [8:09] for $238 million. This is the kind of real estate activity that's happening in the city. Homes that are [8:17] largely empty for much of the year. But it all occurs while New Yorkers are hurting in this same city. [8:22] We're starting to actually bridge that gap. And I'm so excited to be working with the governor on [8:26] it. And yet, is the pied-à-terre tax an acknowledgement that you can't get a broader [8:32] tax on the wealthy here in New York, which is what you promised and how you said you would pay for all [8:37] of these programs? I always said that I believed in the importance of taxing the rich. This is taxing [8:42] the rich. And I said that the two ways that I thought were the most straightforward of doing so, [8:46] personal income tax, corporate tax, those were the two ways that I thought we could achieve it in the [8:51] most straightforward manner. Part of that is a reflection of the fact that a pied-à-terre tax [8:55] has been something that has long been fought for in the city, but hasn't been possible to get over [8:59] the finish line. It's been really exciting to work with the governor to win something that many [9:04] thought would never have a chance. Why did you float raising property taxes, which typically fall [9:10] heavily on the middle class as well? So in New York City, as you said earlier, we have a legal obligation [9:15] to balance the budget. We have three moments where we come forward with the budget. Preliminary [9:20] budget, an executive budget, and then the adopted budget, the final one. The preliminary budget on [9:24] February 17th, we had to both tell New Yorkers about not just the level of our fiscal deficit, [9:29] but what was still left to fill. $5.4 billion, as you said. Now, I can't put forward an accounting [9:35] statement and just say $5.4 billion. We hope to find a way working with the state. That's the truth. [9:40] But in terms of what you have to put in your budget, you have to use the tools the city has [9:45] to fill it in in the interim. And so in the interim, what we did was the only tools we had at our [9:50] disposal, a property tax and rating of our reserves. But I made very clear on that day and every day [9:55] since, it is a last resort because what we want to pursue, what we will spend every day looking to [10:00] pursue, is working with Albany, working with the governor, legislative leaders. And frankly, we're [10:05] already seeing the fruits of that work. This pied-à-terre tax is one example of how we're reducing [10:09] that deficit and not doing so on the backs of working-class New Yorkers. [10:13] You're calling a property tax a last resort. Are you backing away from it? Have you all but [10:20] abandoned your push for a property tax because there was backlash? [10:24] No, I'm just quoting myself from February 17th. The very day that I introduced our preliminary budget, [10:30] I said then and there, I do not want to do this. And the truth of it is because it's a broken system. [10:35] It is a system far more regressive than what we want to do, which is progressive taxation. [10:38] So, a property tax, increasing property taxes, is still on the table? [10:44] We are continuing to work with Albany to ensure that that is not the path that we go down. [10:49] We're seeing in the pied-à-terre tax, we're already finding notes of encouragement that show [10:54] us a different kind of path. This state budget, we hope, will be finalized by the end of this month. [11:00] And then when we put forward our executive budget, we'll be able to update what tools the city has. [11:04] When you talk to New Yorkers, they say they feel like they're already overtaxed. What do you say [11:10] to middle-class New Yorkers who are worried some of these taxes could wind up impacting them? [11:16] I tell them unless they make more than a million dollars a year or own some of the most profitable [11:21] corporations in our city or have a second home that's worth more than five million dollars, [11:25] then these are not taxes that apply to them. And what I've sought to make this city the most expensive [11:30] in the United States of America is one that's affordable for the people who have been priced [11:34] out of it. And that's why I have fought for a vision that looks to ask those with the most [11:40] to pay that little bit more so that everyone can live here. [11:42] And when I talked to you several months ago, I asked you about your push to increase income taxes. [11:48] You expressed confidence you would ultimately be able to reach an agreement with Governor Hochul. [11:53] Where does that stand? Do you have any confidence that she will see eye to eye with you [11:58] at some point on increasing income taxes? Well, I have to say that I am really glad [12:03] at the relationship that the governor and I have developed. I wish it wasn't so unique [12:07] because relationships in the past between mayors and governors have not been this productive, [12:11] frankly, for the city. And what we're seeing in that relationship is a commitment to this city. [12:17] And when I spoke to you about the importance of personal income tax for a million dollars or more [12:21] or corporate tax for the top tier of profitability, it was all grounded in the belief that we had to tax [12:26] the wealthiest among us to deliver for everyone. This peer to tear tax, it is a clear illustration [12:31] of that belief in action. We're so excited to be delivering the peer to tear tax. You view it as a [12:37] step toward a broader tax. It sounds like you haven't abandoned your push for a broader tax on the [12:43] wealthy. I think the peer to tear tax is an incredible step. I think the final part of this budget [12:48] process is to ensure that we're balancing the budget at zero. And that continues to be the work [12:53] that we do with Albany as well as right here in City Hall. All right, let's talk about President [12:57] Trump. When we last spoke after your first Oval Office meeting, one that surprised a lot of people [13:05] in how cordial it was. How would you describe your relationship with President Trump right now? [13:12] I would say that it's honest, it's direct, and it's productive. [13:16] And are you still in regular contact with him? How often do you speak to the president? [13:20] I'll keep the cadence of that between the two of us. Much of that is based on the premise of [13:24] privacy. But what I will say is that those conversations, no matter how they happen, [13:29] they return back to one thing, one of the few things that we have in common, which is our love [13:33] for New York City and how to deliver for the same city. He said it after the first meeting that we [13:38] had in the Oval Office. He told the press that were there that the better this city does, the happier [13:45] he feels. That's exactly how I feel about the city as well. Understood. You're not going to give me the [13:49] exact cadence. But is it fair to say you have had, to some extent, ongoing discussions since that first [13:56] Oval Office meeting? Yes. And we've seen a second meeting at the Oval Office. And much of this is a [14:01] reflection of the fact that he's the president of the United States of America. I'm the mayor of New York [14:06] City. And we know that so much of what the city needs is also dependent on a relationship with the [14:11] federal administration. You know, we are sitting here in City Hall, and I've spoken often about my belief [14:18] that Fiorello LaGuardia is the greatest mayor in our city's history. I shared that with the president [14:21] as well, and I pointed at a portrait of FDR that he had shown me. And I said that so much of what [14:26] LaGuardia was able to accomplish was because of a relationship with FDR, was because of the New Deal [14:31] investments that we saw. And that's why in the second meeting that I had with the president, I put [14:35] forward a proposal to build more housing in a single development than the city has seen since the early [14:41] 70s. And it was something that he was interested in. And that's a big part of the conversation we're [14:45] continuing to have. You know, many Democratic mayors, governors, members of Congress have struggled to [14:51] figure out how to navigate their relationship with President Trump. What do you think you have gotten right [14:58] about that? What do you think that you're doing that's been effective so far? I think to be honest with you, I am [15:04] lucky in that I have something that no one else does, which is that I'm from New York City. And New York City holds a very [15:11] special place for him, as well as for me. We're both from this same city. And it means that our [15:16] conversations are not just of the scale that is typical with the president, but also granular [15:21] about even the things as specific as zoning law changes in midtown Manhattan. And that, I think, [15:27] speaks to the fact that Donald Trump is not just the president of this country. He's also someone who's [15:31] been a New Yorker for his entire life. And there's an investment in this city doing well. [15:36] Because you've now had a number of conversations with President Trump, do you trust President Trump? [15:41] I would say that those conversations are ones where we know they have to continue. [15:46] And there have been times where I have raised things to the president. For example, in that last [15:50] meeting, it was a meeting that we mostly spoke about this housing development. But over the course of [15:56] the meeting, I did mention that just that morning that ICE had detained a Columbia University student. [16:01] I mentioned to him that this was part of a larger trend that we had seen of five individuals being [16:05] detained in or around Columbia University. I gave him a list of those five. [16:09] 30 minutes after the meeting, he called me and said he had now made the decision to release her. [16:14] And so I think we see in those decisions the worth of a relationship that is both honest and direct [16:20] and looking to be productive. And that honesty means acknowledging places of disagreement. [16:25] When I was telling him that, I also told him, as I've said time and again, that I believe these ICE raids [16:30] to be cruel, to be inhumane, and to do nothing to serve in the stated interest that it has, [16:35] which is that of public safety. [16:36] Given that you have found some common ground with President Trump, would you say at this moment [16:41] you trust him? [16:43] I would say that he is someone I will continue to speak with and that I think, like with any [16:47] politician, myself or himself or any other one, we should be judged by the actions that we have. [16:53] You and President Trump arguably both went on similar messages of affordability. [16:58] New York City already had one of the highest energy rates in the country. [17:04] Now the war with Iran has triggered the worst oil disruption in U.S. history. [17:09] Is there anything that you can or will do as mayor to help alleviate some of the high costs [17:16] that New Yorkers are bearing right now due to the war in Iran? [17:20] We are looking to deliver relief to New Yorkers, frankly, even from before this war, [17:24] because while this war has exacerbated a cost-of-living crisis, that is a crisis that existed [17:29] from even before the time I was running for mayor. [17:32] And it's reflected in the fact that we are the most expensive city in the United States of America. [17:36] But I think your question also gets back to the fact that this is a war to not just be opposed [17:41] on political grounds, on moral grounds, but even just on economic grounds. [17:45] We are speaking about a federal administration that has spent upwards of $28 billion killing [17:51] thousands of people all the way over in the Middle East at the same time as we're being told [17:58] that this money cannot be found to invest in working-class Americans across this country. [18:03] And I wish that the words of Tupac from the 90s weren't still prescient, but they continue [18:08] to be true for too many, which is that we always have money for war and not to feed the poor. [18:12] I know you're the mayor of New York, but there are diplomatic talks that President Trump says [18:16] could be restarting. [18:19] Do you support those diplomatic talks, given the strong perspective that you have on Iran? [18:23] I support the end of this war. [18:25] And anything that can deliver that, I think, is critically important. [18:28] I support that not just as an American, but also as the mayor of this city. [18:32] And I say that because at the core of any war is a dehumanization that takes place. [18:37] It is never confined to a battlefield. [18:40] Recently, I read of a report of a hate crime that took place at a subway station. [18:46] I called the young woman. [18:48] She told me that she was a young Muslim woman and that right before her attacker threw her [18:53] to the ground, the first thing that he said to her was, I wonder how many Iranians we killed today. [18:57] That's what these kinds of actions also breed. [19:01] They breed a vision of the world where there is division, where there is a debate as to who belongs. [19:05] We're looking to lead a city where we understand that anyone who lives here belongs here. [19:10] It's time to deliver for all of them. [19:11] Let's talk about ICE. [19:12] You just referenced ICE. [19:14] In the midst of the government shutdown, President Trump deployed ICE agents to airports across [19:19] America, including right here in New York. [19:23] In the wake of that, former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon suggested that there could be a test [19:29] run for sending ICE to polling places in the midterms. [19:34] What will you do if ICE agents show up to polling places in the midterm elections? [19:39] I will do everything in my power to ensure that that is not the case. [19:42] I think it speaks to a vision of this country where democracy is something to be suppressed [19:48] as opposed to something to be protected. [19:50] And I think that what we are seeing time and time again is an attempt to utilize ICE for [19:56] all of the other functions of government that Republicans are unable to fund because they [20:00] don't want to ensure that these kinds of quality of services continue across our country. [20:04] And I know you're not going to get into specifics of your conversations with President Trump, [20:08] but have you directly raised this issue with him? [20:11] Have you said to President Trump that you don't want ICE agents here ahead of the midterms? [20:15] I've said to the president it has nothing to do with elections. [20:18] I've said to him time and time again that ICE is a cruel and inhumane agency and that here [20:23] in New York City we are focused on delivering public safety. [20:26] I talk about affordability every single day. [20:28] I know that affordability, it is premised on the delivery of public safety first and foremost. [20:33] That's why, you know, whether it's the president I'm talking to or anyone else for that matter, [20:37] I speak about the fact that our approach to public safety in New York City, it's working. [20:41] We've delivered the lowest recorded murders in New York City history, [20:45] the joint lowest recorded shootings in New York City history. [20:47] Staten Island has gone more than 180 days without a murder. [20:50] Major crimes are down by more than 9%. [20:52] We know what we need to do to deliver safety. [20:55] We have the NYPD tasked with that responsibility. [20:59] To think that ICE should be doing that, it speaks to a complete abdication, frankly, [21:06] of the kind of politics that New Yorkers are looking for. [21:08] Let's talk about the Democratic Party and the future of the Democratic Party. [21:13] Former Vice President Kamala Harris said just last week she is thinking about running for [21:18] president again. [21:19] Would you like to see former Vice President Kamala Harris run for president again? [21:23] I have to be honest, I haven't thought about the candidacies for president this time. [21:27] My focus is 2026. [21:28] You're the only Democrat who hasn't thought about that. [21:31] And I'm proud to say that I am not and will never be running for president. [21:35] And here in 2026, I want to be delivering for New Yorkers. [21:38] And when it comes to the national level, I want to make sure that we win these midterms [21:42] and actually have a vision that we're fighting for, not just one that we're fighting against. [21:46] Given that former Vice President Kamala Harris was the nominee in 2024, [21:52] do you think she would be the strongest person to represent Democrats in 2028? [21:56] I know you're trying to get me to answer the previous question again. [21:59] I'm trying. [22:00] But I have to be honest with you. [22:01] I think that New Yorkers are tired of politicians pontificating about other politicians. [22:06] What they want to see are results. [22:07] And that's why my focus has been more on potholes than on politics. [22:10] Let me ask you about some New York politicians. [22:12] Okay. [22:12] Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer notably did not endorse you. [22:16] in the general election. [22:18] And now there's a big discussion about generational leadership in your party, as you know. [22:24] Just three years ago, do you think that Senator Schumer should step aside as leader of Senate Democrats? [22:33] I have to be honest with you. [22:34] This is another question that gets into the future, gets into 2028. [22:38] Well, this is a New Yorker, though. [22:39] This is personal for you in some way, in terms of your politics here. [22:43] And I'll tell you that right now, my focus is on working with everyone. [22:46] And that includes Senator Schumer. [22:47] It includes others as well. [22:49] And it's not predicated on, did you endorse me in the election or not? [22:52] Because everyone is a New Yorker who has the opportunity to deliver for this city. [22:57] You know, recently, I worked with Senator Schumer to deliver on a hub of relief for delivery workers right here across from City Hall. [23:05] That's what it looks like to actually work with anyone and everyone. [23:08] We're going to continue to do that. [23:09] Would you like to see Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez challenge Senator Schumer for his seat as a part of the generational change that's being discussed? [23:17] I will tell you this, that I have had the privilege of being represented by Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez. [23:23] And it was an honor to have that be my experience. [23:26] Now it's an honor to work with her as an incredible Congresswoman. [23:30] And I'm excited to see whatever it is that she decides to do next. [23:33] I don't think she's made a decision as yet. [23:35] But we're very proud of her here in New York City. [23:36] Do you have any thoughts about this debate over generational change? [23:39] Is it time for a younger generation of politicians in the Democratic Party? [23:44] I think it's time for a party that reflects the urgency that we're seeing across this country in terms of a hunger, frankly, that is not as much tied just to age, but to vision. [23:55] You know, we know very well what we oppose. [23:57] What are we for? [23:58] That is a question that I think we have to be able to answer. [24:01] What are we fighting for? [24:02] It was not just enough in this mayoral campaign to say that I wasn't like other mayoral candidates. [24:08] We had to always answer the question of New Yorkers, what we deliver for them. [24:12] And I really think that that is at the heart of the question for our party. [24:15] And I'll be honest with you, when you look back at the history books of our party, 100 years ago, we had a very clear vision of what we were fighting for. [24:22] And it is sad that for too many Americans, when they want to look for ambition in the Democratic Party, they have to turn to a history book. [24:28] I want to ask you about some of the focus on you, your family, the first lady. [24:34] She got a lot of attention after she, and I know you've been asked about this, she liked posts. [24:39] They appeared to celebrate Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7th. [24:43] You've said she's her own private person. [24:46] But I want to ask you, and I think some of your allies want to know from you, do you think it's wrong to celebrate those terror attacks on October 7th? [24:54] I want to make very clear, I think that October 7th was a horrific war crime. [24:59] I think that Hamas is a terrorist organization. [25:02] And I think that any violation of international law is something that should be opposed. [25:06] And I believe that because I have a belief in universal politics, whether it applies to here in New York City or anywhere across the world. [25:13] And I'll also be honest with you, that when New Yorkers come up to me and they're asking me questions, most of these questions come back to, can I make my rent? [25:22] Can I find a way to afford to live in the most expensive city in the United States of America? [25:26] Can I afford groceries? [25:28] That's really what our focus has been as an administration. [25:30] What do you say to New Yorkers who might want to hear from the first lady herself on this? [25:35] Well, I'll say to them that, you know, the first lady has shared her own reflections. [25:38] I won't add my words to hers, but that I'm so proud that I get to call her my wife. [25:43] She's an incredible woman and one of immense integrity. [25:46] I want to ask you about some of the Islamophobia that we have seen recently. [25:50] You are the first Muslim mayor of New York City. [25:53] And some Republicans in Congress have posted what are outwardly Islamophobic comments in the wake of the war with Iran. [26:00] Congressman Randy Fine, for example, even saying, quote, we need more Islamophobia, not less. [26:08] How are you reflecting on that rhetoric as a Muslim American serving as the mayor of America's biggest city? [26:15] I think it's disgusting. [26:16] And I think it's a reflection of a kind of bigotry that, frankly, isn't just confined to a Republican Party. [26:22] It's become endemic to political life across this country. [26:25] And what makes it unique is not the fact of its bigotry. [26:29] Many Americans of different faiths face bigotry. [26:32] What makes it unique to me is the way in which it is treated as permissible, that it's acceptable, that it's just a fact of life, that it isn't something to be spoken up in opposition to. [26:42] And I'm less concerned for myself. [26:44] I'm more concerned, frankly, for so many Muslims who face these same kinds of attacks. [26:49] But we don't know their names. [26:51] They don't have the privilege of serving as the mayor of the city. [26:54] And I'm concerned about them because I'm concerned about anyone who calls the city home. [26:58] And how do we ensure that they never feel that their belonging is in question? [27:02] They never feel that because of who they are or where they come from, they don't deserve the same things as anyone else. [27:07] The suspects accused of throwing explosives outside your residence were arraigned this week and pleaded not guilty. [27:16] As you sit here, are you worried about your own personal safety? [27:21] You know, I'm very thankful to have hardworking men and women of the NYPD who keep me safe and keep New Yorkers safe each and every day. [27:29] I don't fear for my safety. [27:31] And that is a testament to the work that they do. [27:34] I will say that there are threats that I receive as by virtue of being the mayor of the city. [27:39] And they will never intimidate me from doing the job that I am so grateful to have, which is a job to serve New Yorkers across the five boroughs. [27:47] We are in an extraordinary moment where political violence is on the rise. [27:52] How do you process that and not let it stand in the way of your work? [27:58] I think it is something that we have to be clear about, that no matter who this political violence seeks to target, it must be vehemently opposed. [28:06] It doesn't matter what you think about that person's opinions or whether you agree with them to allow political violence to become a part of public life. [28:13] It is the way in which democracy starts to disintegrate as a place where we can engage with those with whom we disagree. [28:19] And it is all too easy amidst all of this to try and hide yourself from the world, to try and live only inside of City Hall or in your armored vehicle. [28:32] But we always know that to best understand New Yorkers, you have to live like New Yorkers. [28:37] And that's why I'll take the train, I'll get on the bus, I'll ride a bike, I'll walk around. [28:41] Because if I'm only seeing one New Yorker in the reflection of my window, and that's myself, I'm not going to be able to fight for everyone who calls the city home. [28:49] And just finally, Mayor Mamdani, you are the first Democratic Socialist mayor of New York. [28:55] Now that you have reached 100 days in office, how do you define what democratic socialism means in practice? [29:03] It is the belief that democracy should extend from the ballot box to the rest of our lives. [29:08] It's the belief that we should be fighting for each and every person who calls the city home. [29:12] And in a practical sense, it's the choice to not only deliver the first steps to universal child care, [29:18] but to do it while filling in 102,000 potholes, changing 6,700 catch basins, repaving more than 1,000 miles of roadway. [29:26] Because what we know in our pothole politics and our sewer socialism is that the worth of an ideology can only be judged in its delivery. [29:33] And that's what we're looking to do, we're looking to deliver. [29:35] Now that you've bumped up against the hard realities of a $5.4 billion budget shortfall and the other red tape that you have to go through, [29:44] do you still believe in democratic socialism? Do you still think it can be effective? [29:47] I believe in it even more than I did the day before, and that's because of the fact that it is focused on the needs of working people, [29:54] and working people need that focus, that fight from politicians more than ever. [29:59] Mayor Zoran Mamdani, thank you very much. [30:01] Thank you so much. [30:02] Really appreciate your time. [30:03] Thank you, real pleasure. [30:04] Thank you. [30:04] We got through everything. [30:05] We did. [30:05] We appreciate it. [30:06] We thank you for watching, and remember, stay updated on breaking news and top stories on the NBC News app, [30:12] or watch live on our YouTube channel.