NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani meets President Trump at the White House to talk housing

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani traveled to Washington, D.C. Thursday to meet with President Trump. 

It’s at least the second time the two have met at the White House. Their first meeting, prior to Mamdani’s swearing in, was marked by a friendly and cooperative tone that surprised many observers. The two have since kept in touch. 

The meeting comes on the heels of the president speaking about Mamdani during the State of the Union, calling him a “nice guy.” 

The meeting also came the same day ICE agents detained a Columbia University student. The agents allegedly gaining access to her apartment under “misrepresentations,” according to Columbia University’s acting president Claire Shipman. 

Mamdani wrote on social media after the meeting that he had spoken to the president about the matter, and the president assured him she would be “released imminently.” That student, Elmina “Ellie” Aghayeva, was released a short time later. 

Mamdani also gave the White House a list of four additional students he said were targeted in pro-Palestinian protests. 

Housing on the agenda

Mamdani said his meeting with the president was “productive.”

When the mayor and president first met last year, Mr. Trump asked Mamdani to come back with ideas to build “big things.” Thursday, Mamdani presented the president with a proposal for a massive housing project for more than 12,000 homes, according to a Mamdani spokesperson. 

Mamdani posted a photo on social media of himself and the president, with the president holding up a mockup of a newspaper that reads “Trump To City: Let’s Build,” a riff on the classic “Ford To City: Drop Dead,” which the president can be seen holding in his other hand. Mamdani’s team brought Trump the two printouts as part of their presentation. 

“I’m looking forward to building more housing in New York City,” Mamdani wrote. 

NYC’s emergency snow shoveling program gets national attention

Mr. Trump remarked about New York City’s emergency snow shovelers at the State of the Union. 

“If you apply for that job you need to show two original forms of ID and a Social Security card,” the president said. “Yet they don’t want identification for the greatest privilege in America,” referring to voting. Republicans have been pushing for a new federal law to require photo ID at polling places.

“I can tell you I didn’t expect this much attention nationwide on our emergency snow shoveler program,” Mamdani subsequently joked. 

Earlier this week, the mayor said he wouldn’t discuss how frequently he’s in touch with the president, saying only when they have conversations, “they always focus on how to better our city.” 

“I’ll keep the conversations that I have with the president private,” Mamdani said.