{"id":172721,"date":"2025-11-22T03:00:26","date_gmt":"2025-11-22T03:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/we-agree-on-a-lot-more-than-i-would-have-thought-trump-says-after-meeting-mamdani-bbc\/"},"modified":"2025-11-22T03:00:26","modified_gmt":"2025-11-22T03:00:26","slug":"we-agree-on-a-lot-more-than-i-would-have-thought-trump-says-after-meeting-mamdani-bbc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/we-agree-on-a-lot-more-than-i-would-have-thought-trump-says-after-meeting-mamdani-bbc\/","title":{"rendered":"'We agree on a lot more than I would have thought,' Trump says after meeting Mamdani – BBC"},"content":{"rendered":"

Donald Trump says he agrees "a lot more than I would have thought"<\/a> with Zohran Mamdani after a "great meeting" at the White House
The US president congratulates the New York mayor-elect on his win earlier this month, as he says he thinks he'll do a "great job"
The two New Yorkers have been extremely critical of each other in the past, with Trump calling the self-described democratic socialist a "communist"
Today, however, he calls Mamdani's views a "little out there", adding that he could even "surprise some conservative people"<\/a>
They also say commit to working together to address cost of living issues in New York City<\/a>
Both Mamdani and Trump seem to be going to great lengths to avoid any spat inside the Oval Office, <\/i>writes our White House reporter<\/i><\/a>
This video can not be played
'That's OK, you can say it' – Trump shrugs off Mamdani's 'fascist' comments
Edited by Oliver O'Connell and Brandon Livesay, with Bernd Debusmann Jr at the White House
If there's one thing to take away from today's meeting between Trump and Mamdani, it's that the pair were unexpectedly friendly, almost buddy-buddy, with each other.
After months of warning that New York City would become a "Complete and Total Economic and Social Disaster" under a Mamdani administration, Trump said today he'd be comfortable living in the city with Mamdani as mayor. The president also said the pair have a lot in a common and that he feels confident in Mamdani's ability to lead the city they both love.
For his part, Mamdani said he's looking forward to working with the president to deliver affordability for New Yorkers, a cause he said they both agree on.
It's a stark contrast from just weeks ago when Trump was threatening to withhold federal funding from New York City if Mamdani won the election, send in the National Guard, and arrest Mamdani if he stood in the way of immigration operations.
It also contrasts to Mamdani's election night victory speech where he said directly to Trump, "To get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us".
We'll be closely watching whether that congeniality holds come January.
Thanks for joining us today, we're ending our live coverage but stay tuned for all the latest from Washington and New York.
Here are our top takeaways<\/a> from today's meeting.
This video can not be played
Watch: \u2018I\u2019ll be cheering for him\u2019 – Trump praises Mamdani after first meeting
Here's the BBC's Nomia Iqbal, reporting from the White House on today's unexpectedly friendly meeting.
This video can not be played
Trump-Mamdani meeting not 'showdown' it was billed as – BBC's Nomia Iqbal
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
Reporting from the White House<\/span>
A representative of Mamdani just came out and abruptly told the press and a large crowd of curious onlookers that he will no longer be coming out to speak. The space in Lafayette Park, she said, was not secure enough. Among the press, many of us were wondering this aloud. The space was extremely open, and there were many passersby that were huddling around and amongst the press. At least one young man I spoke to did not know who was expected. "Do you know who's speaking? This is cool," he asked
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
Reporting from the White House<\/span>
Just outside the White House, there's a small group of pro-Mamdani protesters, including one dressed as a giant pink frog.
The frog is holding a sign about ICE enforcement, including an expletive. Another woman is holding a sign reading "Jesus condemned the rich" and chanting "let's go Zohran!".
It appears they are unaware of how friendly the meeting was. They are now dancing to a song with the chorus of "release them Epstein files".
We are waiting for Mamdani to come out and speak to reporters.
After the friendly meeting we just witnessed, it's odd to think that just hours before Mamdani's press conference with President Trump, the House voted 285-98 on a resolution "denouncing the horrors of socialism".
The non-binding resolution, which is largely symbolic, opposes the implementation of socialist policies in the US. Eighty-six Democrats joined Republicans to vote in favour of the resolution, which was first introduced on October 24, before Mamdani won New York City's mayoral election.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said it's "a happy coincidence" that the vote "coincides with the Marxist mayor's meeting at White House", CBS News, the BBC's US partner, reported.
"There's a big widening chasm between the two parties with regard to this idea of big government control of everybody's lives and Marxism," Johnson added.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Bernd Debusmann Jr<\/strong>
Reporting from the White House<\/span>
For all the speculation about a potential Oval Office dust-up during Mamdani's visit, Trump was cordial so far in the Oval Office.
"We're going to be helping him," Trump said, adding that "we agree on a lot more than I would have thought."
That's a notably different message than the one Trump gave during the New York City mayoral campaign, when he repeatedly threatened to withhold federal funding to the city if Mamdani were to win.
"I think you're going to have, hopefully, a really great mayor," he said. "The better he does, the happier I am."
Directly asked about his previous comments that Mamdani is a "communist", Trump said simply that he would "change".
"Some of my views have changed," he added. "I feel very confident that he can do a very good job."
Trump repeatedly expressed support for Mamdani during tough questions from reporters, tapping him on the arm and telling him it's "okay" to say he is a despot.
"I've been called much worst than a despot," he added. "So it's not that insulting."
Trump seems to be going to great lengths to avoid any spat at the White House – as does Mamdani.
Looking to the future, Trump said that the two might have disagreements, but that ultimately they would be able to convince each other.
"I hope we do [meet again]," Trump said towards the end. "We had a great meeting."
In one of the final exchanges before the press conference ended, Trump continued to express his confidence that Mamdani will be a good mayor for New York – which is also the president's hometown.
"If he could be a spectacular success, I'd be very happy," Trump said, as he went on to call Mamdani a "rational person".
"I'll be cheering for him," he adds.
The press conference is now over, but throughout both men emphasised that they had had a productive meeting, and committed to working together to address cost of living issues in New York City.
A reporter asks Mamdani why he flew to Washington DC instead of taking the train, which would be "greener".
Mamdani says he wants to make all modes of transit more affordable for New Yorkers.
Trump steps in, saying that Mamdani works hard and the drive is very long.
"I'll stick up for you," the president says.
The press conference has now ended, but stick with us as we continue to bring you some key lines from their address. <\/i>
Trump is asked whether he'd feel comfortable living in New York City "under a Mamdani administration."
"Yes, I would," Trump responds. "I really would, especially after the meeting. Absolutely."
The president says he agrees with Mamdani on a lot of things, even if they may have different views on some topics.
Trump then goes on to speak about US senator Bernie Sanders, also a democratic socialist, saying that he also agreed with him "on much more than people thought".
Trump is asked if he plans to follow through on his past threats to cut off New York financially.
During Mamdani's campaign, Trump had suggested he would pull federal funding from New York City if Mamdani were to win the election.
But now, Trump says of Mamdani, "I expect to be helping him not hurting him".
Mamdani and Trump appear to be agreeing on a lot of issues in this unexpectedly friendly meeting today.
Mamdani says he discussed federal immigration enforcement operations in New York and concerns from residents about how they are being conducted.
Trump says they discussed crime more than immigration.
"He doesn't want to see crime and I don't want to see crime," the president says. "And I have very little doubt we are not going to get along with on that issue."
This video can not be played
'That's OK, you can say it' – Trump shrugs off Mamdani's 'fascist' comments
A reporter just asked Mamdani if he stands by his previous comments that President Trump is a "fascist".
Before he could answer, Trump smiled and tapped him on the arm, telling him, "You can just say yes" in response to the question because "it's easier".
Mamdani responded tepidly, "OK, yes."
Mamdani is asked his thoughts about the House overwhelmingly voting earlier today to denounce the "horrors of socialism".
The mayor-elect, a self-described Democratic socialist, answers that he is not concerned about House resolutions and his focus is on the work ahead.
"I know there might be differences about ideology, but the place of agreement is the work that needs to be done to make New York City affordable," Mamdani says.
Trump is asked about his plans to sue the BBC for up to $5bn and whether he'll be speaking to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
The president says he gets along really well with Starmer. "I like him, he's a fine person," he says, before adding that UK has energy and immigration issues.
"He's a good man," he adds.
Asked if he spoke to him this week, Trump says he hasn't.
Mamdani is asked whether he took any inspiration from Trump's populist campaign promises to run his own campaign.
The mayor-elect says that he spoke to many New Yorkers who voted for Trump for affordability reasons and is looking to address those concerns.
He says he's looking forward to working with the president on that issue specifically.
Trump is asked a question about Lebanon and the Middle East peace process. The president says Hezbollah "has been a problem in Lebanon". Next, he says that's something he and Mamdani agree on.
"We want to see peace in the Middle East," he says. Mamdani adds that when he spoke to voters who backed Trump in the 2024 election, one thing they mentioned was "an end to forever wars… and they wanted to address the cost of living crisis".
"And I appreciated the chance to discuss both of those two things," he says.
Mamdani is asked if he stands by his recent statements calling Trump a "despot" who "betrayed the country" and promotes a "fascist agenda".
Mamdani says that his discussion with Trump today focused not on their political disagreements, but on their "shared purpose" of serving New Yorkers.
Trump adds: "I've been called much worse than a despot. So it's not that insulting".
Reporters are now asking questions. It's put to Mamdani that Trump has called him a "communist" and the president is asked if he'd do anything to stop the mayor-elect from arresting Benjamin Netanyahu if he came to New York.
"He's got views that are little out there," Trump says, adding that he's going to change, and that even some of his own views have changed. "We all change."
He says the pair have had discussions, and he's confident that they will do a good job. "He'll surprise some conservative people."
Trump says Mamdani will be a "great mayor" of New York City.
Mamdani then speaks, saying he appreciated meeting with the president and that they have a "shared love" for the city.
He says is looking forward to working with him to deliver on affordability.
This video can not be played
Trump congratulates Mamdani on election victory at first meeting
Trump says they talked about housing, food, and a range of other topics around affordability.
"Anything I do is going to be good for New York," Trump says.
Copyright \u00a9 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.<\/a><\/p>\n

source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Donald Trump says he agrees "a lot more than I would have thought" with Zohran Mamdani after a "great meeting" at the White HouseThe US president congratulates the New York mayor-elect on his win earlier this month, as he says he thinks he'll do a "great job"The two New Yorkers have been extremely critical of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":172722,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-172721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-us","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172721"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172721\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}