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A controversial comparison between law enforcement and the Israeli military (IDF) is landing New York City socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani in hot water after the unearthed clip from a 2023 socialist conference went viral on social media.
“We have to make clear that when the boot of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been laced by the IDF,” Mamdani, who was a keynote speaker, said while speaking on a panel during the Democratic Socialists of America’s 2023 national convention.
The comments add fuel for critics who have criticized Mamdani’s past statements and opinions about law enforcement. Mamdani was compelled to go on Fox News and apologize amid backlash over past comments in which he said the NYPD should be defunded and is “racist, anti-queer and a major threat to public safety.”
“Sorry, I just wanted to – before we get to the next questions – I just wanted to address a couple of the questions,” Mamdani said during the 2023 DSA conference panel as he teed up his analogy about the NYPD and IDF. “In the first question there was this setting up of a context where this idea of hyper-local and international – and I think that for anyone to care about these issues we have to make them hyper-local, we have to make clear that when the boot of the NYPD is on your neck it’s been laced by the IDF.”
MAMDANI PRESSED ON PAST RHETORIC ABOUT DEFUNDING THE POLICE
Resurfaced comments from a socialist conference in 2023 tying the NYPD to the Israeli military caused backlash for Democratic Party candidate for New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani. (Nicolas Economou via Getty Images and Democratic Socialists of America)
Fox News Digital reached out to the Mamdani campaign for comment on this story, but did not receive a response. However, he did address the matter during a press gaggle in Hell’s Kitchen Tuesday night.
“You know, I’ve said time and again that with public safety, I’m looking forward to working with police officers here in New York City to deliver it,” Mamdani said during a Tuesday event in Hell’s Kitchen after video of his remarks began circulating. “I’m looking forward to ensuring that we actually tackle the retention crisis at hand, where we now have about 350 officers leaving the department every month. And that is something we will bring to an end by ensuring that police officers are only asked to do the work of a police department, not the work of social services, as they have.”
Meanwhile, Mamdani was also asked about his opinion on keeping the NYPD’s liaison office open in Israel, to which Mamdani responded that his “focus” was on the NYPD in New York, not overseas.
MAMDANI IS ‘DRAWING FOR STRAWS THE BEST WAY HE CAN,’ EX-NYPD LIEUTENANT SAYS
Mamdani has said he wants to reorganize the NYPD and “trust” 911 dispatchers to “make the determination on whether there was any indication of violence” and that law enforcement is necessary to respond. (REUTERS/Jeenah Moon and AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Social media erupted after the clip was posted on X with several prominent accounts on both sides of the aisle slamming Mamdani.
“This guy is truly awful,” Outkick.com founder Clay Travis posted on X.
“People are rightly pointing out that this is textbook antisemitism (all your problems are caused by Jews!), but my question is, when Mamdani issued his blanket apology to the NYPD, did that apology extend to the people who laced their boots?! Inquiring minds want to know!” NewsNation Host Batya Ungar-Sargon posted on X.
“There is a word for this kind of twisted fear mongering and conspiratorial thinking: antisemitism,” Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt posted on X.
“Sick. Zohran Mamdani smeared Israel and the NYPD in one breath, claiming the ‘boot on your neck is laced by the IDF,” Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., posted on X. “This is antisemitic, divisive, & dangerous.”
In addition to Mamdani’s past remarks about law enforcement, his proposed plans on how to approach policing if elected mayor have also raised concern for some.
For example, Mamdani has been criticized for proposing that social workers and other non-police professionals like “transit ambassadors” should handle certain 911 calls, which Mamdani has said would serve to ease NYPD workloads and improve officer retention. The proposal is something Mamdani has championed as far back as 2020.
Meanwhile, during a mayoral debate earlier this month, Mamdani added that he wants to reorganize the NYPD and “trust” 911 dispatchers to “make the determination on whether there was any indication of violence” and that law enforcement is necessary to respond.
Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and adjunct professor of criminal justice at Penn State Lehigh Valley, called Mamdani’s plan “the worst idea” he’s heard in a while.
Democratic Party mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has publicly apologized for past remarks about law enforcement, including that the NYPD should be defunded and is “racist, anti-queer and a major threat to public safety.” (iStock)
“I don’t have a clue what he’s talking about and neither does he,” Giacalone said. “My question is, what happens when the dispatcher is wrong and someone dies? Is it an oops? The liability the city would be taking on with this idea will be off the charts.”
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Former New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo, called Mamdani “divisive across the board” and slammed his opponent in the New York City mayoral race for “call[ing] the NYPD racist.”
“You can’t be a divisive leader in this city. You have to be united,” Cuomo added at a campaign event. “Because all day long in this city people are bumping into each other and one of the main responsibilities you learn inherently as a governor, a mayor or an executive, is that you have to constantly be working to keep people together because they will separate and fight naturally. You’re the force that’s pulling them together.”
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.
