New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani told MS NOW Wednesday he is willing to face whatever consequences come from defying President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.
MS NOW reporter Jacob Soboroff, who interviewed Mamdani, recalled how U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem warned that Mamdani could be "violating the Constitution" after he posted a video giving residents advice on how to evade Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
"Gavin Newsom told me he was prepared to be arrested. Tom Homan threatened anybody that stands in the way could be arrested," Soboroff told Mamdani. "You’ve been arrested before, standing up for people’s rights. JB Pritzker told me that Donald Trump should 'come and get me.' Are you prepared to be arrested by the federal government if you stand up to their immigration enforcement?"
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"I’m prepared for any consequence that comes for standing up for New Yorkers because that’s my job," Mamdani replied. "That’s what I ran to do, and I think that it’s time that New Yorkers look at the City Hall that’s right here and see a reflection of their struggles as opposed to a reflection of the scandal that has engulfed so much of our politics."
"I’ve also heard you say that no one is above the law, and anyone can be held accountable, and that goes for the president of the United States. And it also goes for ICE agents," Soboroff said. "I don’t want to put words in your mouth, but is there a scenario in which the NYPD under you could arrest ICE agents on the streets of New York for their behavior towards immigrants?"
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"My focus is for the NYPD to not be assisting ICE in their immigration enforcement and to actually be following the policies of sanctuary city law. And I do believe, however, that for the law to have meaning, there has to be accountability for all of us.
"And that is something that is necessary to speak about, to talk about, to act on, no matter who we’re referring to, because so many are losing faith in politics in this moment because they’re seeing inconsistency take place at every different facet of our society."