White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt did not hold back during Monday’s press briefing, torching New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani as a “radical communist” who embodies the far-left extremism currently consuming the Democratic Party.
Leavitt laid into Mamdani — the socialist state assemblyman who stunned political observers by defeating disgraced ex-Governor Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary — calling him a symptom of a party that has “doubled down on craziness.”
“The Democrats are embracing candidates who openly want to tear down the very fabric of America,” Leavitt said. “Zohran Mamdani is not just a Democratic Socialist — he’s a flat-out communist who wants to defund the police, abolish Israel, and eliminate American wealth.”
She pointed to Mamdani’s recent appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” where the mayoral hopeful refused multiple times to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada” — a slogan widely recognized as a violent, antisemitic call to arms. Despite host Kristen Welker’s repeated attempts to clarify, Mamdani brushed off the concern and said it wasn’t his role to “police language.”
“That’s not leadership — that’s cowardice,” Leavitt said. “Any candidate who can’t bring themselves to denounce open hatred has no business running a city, much less one as iconic as New York.”
?@PressSec BASHES Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani:
“The Democrats are DOUBLING DOWN on craziness and radical policies that are undermining the very fabric of our country…Zohran Mamdani…a communist who proudly calls to defund the police, pedals anti-Semitism, praises… pic.twitter.com/HUVT9JFlNi
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) June 30, 2025
Mamdani’s history of supporting the anti-Israel BDS movement and aligning with pro-Hamas demonstrators has made even Democrats uneasy. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who represents a heavily Jewish district, declined to endorse Mamdani over the weekend, citing the candidate’s troubling rhetoric.
“‘Globalizing the Intifada’ is not an acceptable phrasing,” Jeffries said on ABC’s “This Week,” adding that Mamdani would “have to clarify his position” if he hopes to earn the trust of New York’s Jewish community.
Leavitt’s takedown comes as President Trump has vowed that if Mamdani becomes mayor, federal support for New York City will be on the chopping block unless the radical candidate “behaves.”
The message from the White House is clear: under Trump’s leadership, there is zero tolerance for antisemitism, anti-police extremism, or Marxist ideology masquerading as public service.