New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani countered US President Donald Trump’s warning with a “threatened” jibe. The 34-year-old Indian-origin said that Trump is “threatened” by his campaign after the US president warned voters of cutting federal funds if Mamdani wins the mayoral elections. “You can clearly see that Donald Trump is threatened by our campaign. He’s threatened by it because, like his, we’ve diagnosed the crisis in working-class New Yorkers’ lives – the cost of living,” Mamdani said in an interview with CNN on Monday.”But unlike him, we’re actually going to deliver on that. And that is a contrast that he can’t bear to see, because while he is spending USD 300 million remodelling a White House ballroom, the same amount of money that could provide SNAP benefits for 100,000 New Yorkers,” he added.Mamdani’s jibe came after the US president, in a lengthy post on Truth Social, said that he will cut federal funding to New York if Mamdani wins the election. He also endorsed former New York State governor Andrew Cuomo for the top city post.”If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required, to my beloved first home, because of the fact that, as a Communist, this once great City has ZERO chance of success, or even survival!” Trump wrote in a post. “It can only get worse with a Communist at the helm, and I don’t want to send, as President, good money after bad. It is my obligation to run the Nation, and it is my strong conviction that New York City will be a Complete and Total Economic and Social Disaster should Mamdani win,” Trump added.Aiming at Trump, Mamdani said that the US president is making it harder for Americans to afford groceries. “And this money that we’re talking about, it’s money that New York City is owed. It’s not Donald Trump’s to decide which city or state will get what money. This is the money that New Yorkers are owed, and this is the money that we’re going to fight for,” Mamdani said.Mamdani also reacted to Trump’s endorsement of Cuomo, saying, “We’ve known since the Primary that Andrew Cuomo was funded by the same billionaires that gave us Donald Trump’s second term, even just until these final days, (Cuomo) denied that he was Donald Trump’s preferred candidate.””But now it’s written out for the entire world to see. This is the man that Donald Trump wants to be the next mayor of New York City, and not because he’ll be good for New Yorkers but because he’ll be good for Donald Trump and New Yorkers are exhausted of this agenda in Washington. They don’t want to see a mimic of it come here to City Hall,” Mamdani said.
