The president’s Oval Office meeting with New York’s incoming leader is not open to the press.
Trump, 79, frequently invites reporters into the Oval Office for a front-seat view as he sits down with U.S. and world leaders, but, according to his schedule, the media was barred from his first meeting with Mamdani, the Democratic socialist 45 years his junior.
Their first face-to-face comes after Trump lobbed a series of nasty attacks on the political upstart who mounted an underdog campaign and went on to win the race to lead the largest city in the U.S.
Trump has blasted Mamdani as a “communist lunatic” and “not very smart.” He falsely accused him of being in the country illegally, threatened to arrest him, and warned that he would cut off money to New York if he won.
He’s going to be the mayor of NYC. He has no choice but to meet with the President. Besides, he’s upholding a campaign promise to meet with anyone (see article).
After all the shit Trump said about home during the election, the shit the press secretary said about the “communist coming to the White House,” the absolute best thing Mamdani can do right now is nothing. Let these idiots fall over themselves backtracking and unsaying all the shit they’ve spewed. All he has to do is stand there with a smile and not say shit. Even if Trumps base never comes around on him, he was never going to win those people. He’s already won all he was ever going to win when Trump said positive things about him after the meeting. No need for him to say anything else. Just go back to NY, wake up tomorrow and get on with his life.