President Trump and NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani stunned observers with a warm, 40-minute Oval Office meeting on Friday, that ended in mutual praise and a joint press conference — a dramatic reversal from months of Trump calling the democratic socialist a “communist lunatic” and “jihadist” and Mamdani branding Trump a “fascist despot.”
Trump showered the 34-year-old mayor-elect with compliments, calling him “a very rational person who really wants to see New York be great again,” rejecting GOP attacks (including Rep. Elise Stefanik’s “jihadist” label), and pledging federal help on affordability and crime.
When asked if he still believed Trump was a fascist, Mamdani hesitated; Trump interjected with a grin, “That’s okay. You can just say yes,” drawing laughs and viral clips that racked up tens of millions of views overnight.
The unexpectedly cordial encounter dominated headlines and split media reaction along ideological lines:
- Mainstream and liberal outlets (NYT, CNN, NPR, BBC) hailed Mamdani’s diplomatic triumph, with headlines like “Trump Heaps Praise on Mamdani” and praise for securing federal cooperation for New York’s $100 billion-plus funding pipeline.
- Conservative voices on Fox News, Truth Social, and MAGA X accounts expressed outrage and betrayal from Vice President JD Vance joking about a “stomach bug” to skip the meeting to influencers accusing Trump of going “soft on communism.”
- Social media exploded with memes, “buddy movie” jokes, and trending phrases like “Trump-Mamdani bromance,” while progressives celebrated the mayor-elect “charming” the president and hardline Republicans warned the truce would collapse the moment policy clashes arise.
The meeting has instantly reshaped New York’s relationship with the incoming administration just weeks before Mamdani’s January 1 inauguration, shifting the narrative from feared federal retaliation to cautious optimism — though most analysts agree the détente could prove short-lived if Mamdani’s socialist agenda collides with Trump’s promises.