‘Just say yes’: Trump cuts in as NYC mayor-elect Mamdani dodges on calling him a ‘fascist’ at Oval Office
During an Oval Office media spray on Friday Fox News Jacqui Heinrich pressed New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani on whether he still believes President Donald Trump is a fascist Mamdani began to answer but before he could finish Trump cut in from behind the Resolute Desk That s okay Trump stated before patting Mamdani s arm You can just say yes It s easier than explaining it I don t mind The full -minute exchange capped a wide-ranging availability focused on affordability housing and residents safety and brimmed with tension between Mamdani s past rhetoric and the political reality of governing alongside the Trump White House TRUMP MAMDANI SET TO FACE-OFF IN FIRST OVAL OFFICE MEETING WHAT S ON THE TABLEHeinrich had earlier demanded Mamdani whether he stood by his previous comments describing Trump s agenda as fascist and despotic Mamdani did not give a direct answer saying only that he intended to work with the president where we agree to help the city s million residents Trump jumped in before he finished adding with a laugh I ve been called much worse than a despot maybe he ll change his mind TRUMP PREDICTS 'CIVIL' MEETING WITH MAMDANI DESPITE PAST COMMENTS ABOUT EACH OTHERThe moment came after both men publicly emphasized areas of anticipated cooperation Trump pointed to falling force prices and reported he required utilities including Con Edison to lower rates Mamdani outlined a plan centered on housing rent groceries and utilities saying New Yorkers are facing a cost-of-living predicament that threatens to push families out of the city Heinrich also pressed Trump on Ukraine asking how his proposed peace plan would work if President Zelenskyy rejected it Trump replied that Ukraine would have to like it or keep fighting and repeated his claim that U S sponsorship would depend on securing an agreement He also asserted that casualty numbers in the conflict were far higher than publicly revealed DAVID MARCUS MR MAMDANI GOES TO WASHINGTON BETWEEN ROCK AND HARD PLACEThe spray also touched on population safety with Mamdani saying he intends to maintain roughly NYPD officers while shifting more non-urgent calls away from police and toward mental-health responders Trump reported both men shared a goal of removing very bad people and making the city safer adding that we want New York to thrive again The exchange with Heinrich is likely to fuel further scrutiny over how Mamdani balances far-left progressive messaging with the realistic demands of governing The mayor-elect has proudly identified as a democratic socialist but revealed he intends to meet the moment in partnership with the Trump administration when attainable Trump who joked that the spray attracted more reporters than usual revealed he was open to meeting again Mamdani added the same saying his goal was to find points of agreement that could deliver for New Yorkers right away The President posted to Truth Social on Friday night documenting the visit with several photos of the two men captioned It was a Great Honor meeting Zohran Mamdani the new Mayor of New York City The White House did not straightaway respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment
