New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said he has "many disagreements" with President Donald Trump but is willing to set those differences aside for the sake of his city.
"I intend to make it clear to President Trump that I will work with him on any agenda that benefits New Yorkers. If an agenda hurts New Yorkers, I will also be the first to say something," Mamdani said Thursday at a press conference.
"I know that for tens of thousands of New Yorkers, this meeting is between two very different candidates who they voted for, for the same reason," he added. "They wanted a leader who would take on the cost of living crisis that makes it impossible for working people to afford living in this city."
The mayor-elect is scheduled to meet with Trump at the White House on Friday.
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Trump has repeatedly called out Mamdani for his political views, including labeling him a "Communist Lunatic" after his victory on Election Day.
In the weeks leading up to the mayoral election, the president threatened to pull federal funding to New York City if Mamdani won. Afterward, Trump said of the city that he would "help them a little bit."
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Mamdani, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist, said at Thursday's press conference at City Hall Park in Lower Manhattan that a key part of the meeting was to talk about the issue of affordability.
"When we speak about an affordability crisis, we're speaking about 1 in 4 New Yorkers living in poverty, 1 in 5 struggling to afford $2.90 to ride the bus. New Yorkers, for whom the daily acts of life are becoming increasingly harder to afford," Mamdani told reporters.
During a brief exchange with Fox News' Alexis McAdams, Mamdani said he's prepared for the White House meeting with Trump. Asked how he would respond if the president "rips you apart" on camera, Mamdani replied, "I'll be ready for whatever happens."
When another reporter mentioned Trump's tense Oval Office exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in February, Mamdani replied, "I'll stand up for New Yorkers. Every single day."
