(Image credits: X@NYCMayor)
New York City Mayor Zahran Mamdani met with President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday in a previously unannounced meeting that lasted about an hour, focusing on major new housing investments in the city while also addressing the arrest of a Columbia University student.After the meeting, Mamdani posted on X, “I had a productive meeting with President Trump this afternoon. I look forward to building more housing in New York City.”As part of his visit, Mamdani presented Trump with a mock front page of a newspaper created by his team. The headline featured, “Trump to the City: Let’s Build” — a quote from the famous 1975 New York Daily News cover that read “Ford to the City: Drop the Dead,” a reference to Gerald Ford’s pledge to veto financial aid to the city.
Mamdani’s office declined to provide details about the housing proposal, but Anna Bahr, the mayor’s communications director, said Trump was “very excited” about it. During their first one-on-one meeting at the White House in November, Trump encouraged Mamdani to come back with an idea to build major projects together in New York City, she said. Bahr added that the mayor’s team created the front page and headlines to show the kind of reaction new federal housing investments could generate.
During Thursday’s meeting, Mamdani also raised the detention of Columbia University student Elly Aghaeva, who was arrested by federal immigration authorities earlier in the day. The arrest sparked protests on campus and allegations that agents gained entry into a university-owned residence by posing as police officers searching for a missing child.Just hours after Agayeva’s arrest, the federal government reversed course and allowed her to walk free after what appeared to be interference by Donald Trump.
Mamdani also provided White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles a list of four other students targeted by federal authorities and requested the administration’s assistance.“He just informed me that she will be released soon,” Mamdani wrote on social media, referring to Aghayeva.The rapid developments have highlighted the evolving relationship between Trump and Mamdani, a Democratic socialist whom Trump once threatened to deport. During the mayoral campaign, Trump repeatedly criticized Mamdani as a “communist,” but he seemed more receptive after their meeting in November.