Trump says Mamdani should reach out to him: 'Has to be a little bit respectful of Washington'
President Trump said Wednesday he wants to see New York City succeed in the wake of the election of self-described democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani (D) but cautioned that the mayor-elect must be "respectful of Washington."
"I would like to see the new mayor do well, because I love New York," Trump, a New York City native, said in an interview with Fox News's Bret Baier on "Special Report."
The president noted Mamdani's warning to Trump in his victory speech that "to get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us."
"I think it’s a very dangerous statement for him to make. He has to be a little bit respectful of Washington, because if he’s not he doesn’t have a chance of succeeding," Trump said on Fox News.
Asked if he planned to reach out to Mamdani, Trump said the mayor-elect "should reach out to us."
"We’ll see what happens. But I would think it would be more appropriate for him to reach out to us," Trump said.
Mamdani won Tuesday's mayoral election with just more than 50 percent of the vote, defeating former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.
Trump had for months attacked Mamdani, deriding him as a "communist" and warning that he would withhold federal funding for New York City if he was elected. The White House in October said it was freezing billions of dollars in funds for New York transportation projects.
Trump on Monday urged voters to back Cuomo.