How bad is Zohran Mamdani for New York? Let us count the ways

New York Post

6 days ago

In the dwindling days of his run for Gracie Mansion, Zohran Mamdani has picked a strange priority: publicly funding gender change treatments for minors.
If elected, the New York Sun reported, Mamdani plans to spend $65 million on 'gender-affirming care.'
He also promised to investigate New York hospitals that have stopped providing the services, fearing the Trump administration's wrath; and create an 'Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs' at city hall.
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That Mamdani decided gender changes for teenagers deserved his campaign's attention typifies his problem as a candidate — and danger to the city.
It's the latest stunt by a candidate who's already promised to keep the NYPD emaciated, drive the rich from New York, 'globalize the intifada,' and otherwise put his ideological fantasies ahead of what voters actually need.
Just take his signature proposals.
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Mamdani wants to cut New York's sky-high housing costs. And he'll do it by stacking the rent guidelines board with cronies who will follow through on his promise to 'freeze the rent.'
That might ease the burden on New Yorkers living under rent control (if it survives judicial scrutiny). But it will lead to more controlled apartments sitting vacant — driving costs up for the two-thirds of New Yorkers who aren't protected.
He wants to deal with food costs and the prevalence of 'food deserts' by creating government-run grocery stores. These will cut into corporate stores' allegedly usurious profit margins (barely 1-2 percent).
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At least, that's the idea. In reality, they'll run about as well as other public services — and eventually demand a taxpayer bailout, adding to New Yorkers' bills.
Mamdani wants to pay for all this by taxing New York's rich. It's a line straight from Mamdani endorser Bernie Sanders.
But millionaires already pay 41% of the state's income taxes, and the city in particular is dependent on the jobs brought by the big corporations Mamdani wants to tax.
Now, wealthy New Yorkers like grocery magnate John Catsimatidis and hedge funder Bill Ackman are threatening to flee the state if Mamdani is elected. How will he pay for his plans when there are no billionaires left to tax?
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Mamdani's commitment to radicalism over solutions extends beyond his campaign-trail talking points.
He's walked back his support for defunding the police, which he once called 'a feminist issue.' But he's still the only candidate who won't commit to hiring more NYPD officers, even as the force is well below recent peaks.
Then there's his unhealthy fixation on the state of Israel, which has been with him since he helped found Bowdoin College's Students for Justice in Palestine chapter.
Mamdani could dodge questions about his views by insisting that he wants to be the mayor of New York City, not Tel Aviv.
Instead, he jumps to the defense of protesters who want to 'globalize the Intifada.'
The call for a worldwide terror campaign apparently represents 'a desperate desire for equality and equal rights,' in Mamdani's words.
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As many have noted, Mamdani's campaign has struck on a real problem. The city costs too much, and New Yorkers want a mayor who will help make it more affordable.
A candidate with real solutions to affordability would probably be cruising to victory right now.
But Mamdani isn't laser-focused on affordability. He'd rather dream up wild plans about public grocery stores, keep the NYPD small, and defend campus Hamas sympathizers.
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And, of course, he'd rather spend taxpayer dollars on pediatric transitions — how's that for affordability?
Charles Fain Lehman is a policy analyst and journalist who works on issues of urban policy.