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What A Day
Zohran Mamdani's Fight For NYC feat. Brad Lander
00:24:57
The New York City Board of Elections on Tuesday confirmed Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old state assemblyman, beat former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the city's Democratic primary for mayor. And not by a thin margin – the results show Mamdani won by 12 points after the ranked choice vote count. The decisive victory puts Mamdani in pole position to win November’s general election and become the city’s next mayor, though Cuomo and current Mayor Eric Adams are set to run as independents. New York City Comptroller Brand Lander, who also ran for mayor (he and Mamdani cross-endorsed each other), talks about what Mamdani’s win says about the state of national Democratic politics. And in headlines: House Republicans bickered over the latest version of President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill, a New York jury convicted disgraced rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution but acquitted him of more serious charges, and the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled a nearly ...
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- [00:02]
Jane Coston
It's Thursday, July 3rd. I'm Jane Coston and this is what a Day. The show that is wishing you a happy 4th of July and hopes you get to do something that is actually fun and enjoyable and isn't thinking about how our country is currently run by racist alligator enthusiasts. On today's show, Sean Combs, AKA Diddy, was denied bail and is awaiting sentencing after a jury found him guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. And Wisconsin's highest court ruled that a nearly 200-year-old law does not ban abortion in the state. But let's talk about New York City, America's biggest city and a place that's finally getting trash binned so you can stop seeing and smelling mountains of garbage bags in the streets. The city's Board of Elections on Tuesday confirmed that zoran Mamdani, a 33 year old new York State assembly member, beat former New York governor and alleged sex pest Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary to be the next mayor of the Big Apple. And not by a thin margin. The results show that Mamdani won by 12 points. Now, there's a lot I can't tell you about what Mamdani's win means, but it puts him in the driver's seat for the mayoral race, given how Democrats dominate New York. And his main opposition will likely be the current mayor, alleged corruption enthusiast Eric Adams, especially since Adams has the backing of the city's favorite former resident President Donald Trump. Here he is on Tuesday and or.
- [01:28]
Brad Lander
You have a good independent running Mayor Adams, who's a very good person. I helped him out a little bit. He had a problem.
- [01:34]
Jane Coston
Of course, Trump had way more to say on the subject of Mamdani, both on his personal yelling platform Truth Social and during a press conference with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Tuesday.
- [01:44]
Brad Lander
A lot of people saying he's here illegally. He's, you know, we're going to look at everything.
- [01:48]
Jane Coston
But a lot of people are not saying that because it's not true. Racists are saying that because they are racist. They are also complaining about Mamdani eating rice with his hands or having a wife who is either too Muslim or not Muslim enough. Actually, a lot of the so called criticism Mamdani has gotten from the right seems to be that he is both going to personally launch a caliphate from Central park and that he's going to do full communism. A non Jewish Fox News host even said that she questioned the faith of Jewish Democrats who supported Mamdani anyway. Mamdani, a United States citizen born in Uganda, to parents of Indian descent who has lived in America since childhood, addressed Trump's we're going to take a look at deporting him bullshit. In the same way Mamdani campaigned for office in the first place, by focusing on the issue he cares most about, making life affordable for everyday people. Here he is responding to Trump.
- [02:38]
Brad Lander
I fight for working people. I fight for the very people that have been priced out of this city. And I fight for the same people that he said he was fighting for. This is the same president who ran on a campaign of cheaper groceries, who ran on a campaign about easing a suffocating cost of living crisis. And ultimately, it is easier for him to fan the flames of division than to acknowledge the ways in which he has betrayed those working class Americans, not just in this city, but across this country, and the ways in which he continues to betray them.
- [03:05]
Jane Coston
How does Mamdani want to focus on working people? Raising taxes on New York's top earners and raising the corporate tax rate to pay for free buses, expanded free childcare, and starting a city owned grocery store pilot program. In addition, he supports a rent freeze on stabilized apartments and an increase in housing stock to make housing more affordable. Mamdani got a lot of support from New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who also ran for mayor. The two cross endorsed one another. I spoke to Lander on Wednesday afternoon. Controller Brad Lander, welcome to what a day.
- [03:35]
Brad Lander
Great to be here. Thanks for having me on.
- [03:37]
Jane Coston
Now that Assemblyman Mandani's primary win has been officially confirmed and by a decisive 12 point lead, what do you think were the keys to his decisive win?
- [03:48]
Brad Lander
Look, he ran a fantastic campaign, like, focused like a laser beam on affordability and the cost of living issues that are crushing New York's work and families. He did it with his own charisma and also with just a real native understanding of the media landscape, of the things people are paying attention to, and did a great job. I mean, you know, I was working hard in the same attentional landscape to try to break through, and props to him for finding ways to do it.
- [04:18]
Jane Coston
Now, obviously, in any local race, especially a municipal race, there's a lot of, like, hyper local politics that get lost in the national media narratives about it. But with that said, do you think Mamdani's win is sort of an only in New York story, or does it say something bigger about national Democratic politics?
- [04:35]
Brad Lander
I mean, I think people are fed up with the establishment with sort of politics that look like they're politics of the past, hungry for Fighters. I think in many ways, the line right now in the Democratic Party is not between progressives and moderates, but between fighters and folders. And he showed a like, ambitious, get out there and fight. Do things in a new way. Bring some hopefulness into this dark time. And then more on the how do you reach people front. I ran a campaign that I think was like it was 10 years ago, you know, raise money and advertise on television. I mean, it wasn't that bad. But, you know, people need to wake up to the digital media tools that are all our lives right now. It's not just young people. All of us are on our phones all the time. That is bad for us. But it is true. You know, look, then it helps to have, like, really great charismatic candidates as well. Those you can't always get at the drugstore, but you know them when you see them.
- [05:38]
Jane Coston
One voting block Mamdani did struggle with are black voters. A New York Times analysis found that former Governor Andrew Cuomo dominated in precincts where at least 70% of residents are black. Cuomo still hasn't ruled out running as an independent. Mayor Eric Adams still plans to do so. So what do you think Mamdani needs to do to bolster support in black communities that may be skeptical of his message?
- [05:59]
Brad Lander
I will say he did very well with younger black voters and that the gap between him and Andrew Cuomo was, I think, about 15 points, which is significant. But that said, look, he's gotta get out and do the work. You, you know, you gotta be in neighborhoods talking to people in the same way that he went, you know, after Trump was elected, you know, did that famous video where he went out to Woodside Avenue and Fordham Road. Those are largely immigrant neighborhoods. More Latino, more Asian. He's gotta do the same thing in Southeast Queens and in Harlem and in, you know, central Brooklyn. You know, it is definitely true that black voters are feeling the crushing affordability crisis more than anybody else. I think it's just the case that older black voters have reason to be a little more small c conservative to fear what's new, what's hip. But that said, I mean, what folks want, in my opinion, is that their kids would be able to imagine they could buy a home in New York City and that they know their neighborhoods are going to be safe and someone's gonna, you know, address, you know, the safety and affordability crises are very real. You know, it's just a question of kind of getting out there and getting people more comfortable. Maybe it's one of those campaigns Like Jews tried to run in Florida, where we sent young people to go talk to their bubbies and zadies, their grandmas and grandpas to explain why it was important to vote. And this will be like, young people, go talk to your parents. And that might be a way to do some interesting outreach to older African American and other voters.
- [07:36]
Jane Coston
The higher New York Democratic establishment has been so far reluctant to endorse Mamdani. We have not seen endorsements from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Governor Kathy Hochul. Can he win the general election without the support of the broader party?
- [07:52]
Brad Lander
He can win the general election without the support of the broader party. But the party should get on board in order to show that what we're building is this broader coalition. I mean, he is the Democratic nominee for mayor, and senior New York Democrats should support him. You don't have to agree with every single thing he says. You know, an assembly member, Michael Lasher did a really Upper west side Jewish Democrat, definitely closer to the center than Zoran or than me, did a really good endorsement where he made clear there's some things we really disagree on. But I believe he is a person of decency and integrity. He has the overwhelming support of the Democratic electorate. He's going. He is our nominee. He's going to be our mayor. So if you love this city, figure out how you can help make it go well, rather than lengthening the fight that is dividing New Yorkers, especially with the President of the United States threatening to put our candidate in a concentration camp, when I say this is the dividing line is not progressives versus moderates, it's fighters versus folders. People are gonna show which side of that line they are on in the coming days and weeks, and the consequences will be felt for a long time to come.
- [09:13]
Jane Coston
Let's get to the Trump of it all. You know, this week, without any evidence, he questioned Mamdani's citizenship despite, again, zero evidence to do so, and threatened to arrest him if he blocked immigration arrests. But it, you know, that is bonkers. I want to say, just off the top, it's bonkers.
- [09:31]
Brad Lander
Except two weeks ago, his guys arrested me.
- [09:34]
Jane Coston
Yeah, I know. Because that's the thing where it just becomes like these empty threats just got way more full. But it does raise serious questions about the, you know, the challenges Mamdani will face when he's working with a hostile president who keeps posting on social media about how he's going to save New York and also make it hot again, which I thought That I was pretty sure that currently New York is hot enough. So how are you thinking about that?
- [10:00]
Brad Lander
Well, first, I mean, on the upside, I guess I would say to me, I cannot think of a better identity from which to stand up to Donald Trump than New Yorker. It's like if there's a place where we have a chance to make inclusive, multiracial democracy real and remind people what's great about it, that it generates energy and vitality and culture and creativity and value and wealth, and then we try to figure out how to like, keep it going, keep the city safe and clean and well functioning and share its benefits better. Like, what we have here is the answer to Donald Trump. And if we get it together, I really believe it can work. And yes, he's very likely to send in the National Guard at some point like he did in Los Angeles. He is very likely to ratchet up immigration enforcement like he is doing here and around the country. We, like many others, are gonna face budget cuts. So those all take serious work. And, you know, Mayor to be Mamdani is going to need a first rate administration, you know, and make sure that he's in position to deliver on promises and run the city well. But I think will be like a real clarion call for what the alternative to Trumpism looks like.
- [11:24]
Jane Coston
I think the challenge though is that yes, all of that is likely to happen. Like Trump is likely to send in the National Guard, he is likely to do, you know, to ramp up ICE in New York. But also, let's say Mayor Tabi Mamdani would have to work with the administration. I mean, that was something that we talked about a lot with Governor Hochul when we had her on the show a couple months ago. That is a big part of the job, those kind of interactions. So how do you think Mamdani would do so with this particular administration, given all of this?
- [11:54]
Brad Lander
I mean, that's a big question. I'll give a few thoughts. First, one of my favorite things that happened in the last few weeks was that Andy Byford, who is maybe the most talented municipal transit leader in the world, he ran the mta. He's been back helping run Amtrak. Donald Trump appointed him to lead the Penn Station redevelopment. He's gonna be great at that though. And maybe we'll have to put a few more Corinthian columns on the new Penn Station. That would be my design style. But that's a great place for New York City and state and the federal government to work together. So there can be some opportunities at the levels of Housing and healthcare and transportation. And a lot of folks are continuing to try to do that despite the madness at the higher level. When the president is threatening to deport, strip your citizenship and imprison you, you have to stand up and fight. There are ways of doing that. You try to channel the non violent resistance traditions. We have them in our repertoire. Like we know how to stand up and fight in ways that also look to de escalate. None of that's easy. But a good starting block is your voters are with you. They feel some hope in the future. You put a good team on the field and build some unity. You do your homework, you pick up the garbage, you partner with other government agencies. And then when fights come from bullies, you don't back down.
- [13:28]
Jane Coston
I wanted to ask, there have been voices largely on the right criticizing you and raising questions about your commitment to your faith because you have endorsed Mamdani. I can't even begin to imagine how insulting that must be. But what do you think that says about how outsiders are viewing this race?
- [13:47]
Brad Lander
Yeah, I mean, we are recognizably New York City characters. I mean, I'm pretty sure I scan for people like a Jewish New Yorker. And yeah, I mean the fact that Donald Trump and Andrew Cuomo and Eric Adams are all trying to weaponize antisemitism and the very real and understandable fears of Jews, I feel this of rising antisemitism for their own craven political purposes. It's like so cynical, it's hard to believe. And yet this is the timeline we're in. And I take it very personally. And I get that people are just suspicious of politicians in general and would imagine that we don't really have souls or real identities. But Jewish New Yorker is not something I put on to run for office with. Raising my Jewish kids here is the most important thing to me in the world. Like that's how I wake up every day and go to bed at night. And you know, Donald Trump or Eric Adams or Andrew Cuomo might be able to defeat me in a race, but they can't make me a bad Jew. And I just tried to bring that spirit to the race long before the cross endorsement. I mean, that was about me standing up. I have been a critic of Israel's occupation of the west bank in Gaza for decades and of the way it's prosecuting the war in Gaza for many months. And you know, that led me to be attacked myself and just be out there for who I am. And I mean, I mostly do my cursing in Yiddish and I did at Cuomo several times in this race. I do think that put me in a position when we did the cross endorsement to show you could disagree with us. We don't agree 100% with each other, but here are a Muslim New Yorker and a Jewish New Yorker standing together to say we're not going to let Andrew Cuomo be the mayor. We want to focus on affordability. We both believe in keeping all New Yorkers safe. That's a pretty good place to start. Let's try to have some conversation about it.
- [15:53]
Jane Coston
Controller Lander, thank you so much for joining me.
- [15:56]
Brad Lander
Really nice to be on with you. Thank you.
- [15:58]
Jane Coston
That was my conversation with New York City Controller Brad Lander. We'll get to more of the news in a moment, but if you like the show, make sure to subscribe, leave a five star review on Apple Podcasts, watch us on YouTube and share with your friends. More to come after some ads what if you could use your home equity to pay off your debt without monthly payments so you could focus on reaching your other financial goals? With a home equity investment from HomeTap, you can get access to your home equity in cash, get closer to financial freedom and get more out of life. Learn more and see if you pre qualify for an investment@hometap.com subject to eligibility. Terms and conditions apply. Get access to your home equity in cash. Visit hometap.com to apply in minutes.
- [16:48]
Brad Lander
That's hometap.com how many discounts does USAA Auto Insurance offer?
- [16:54]
Jane Coston
Too many to say here. Multi vehicle discount?
- [16:56]
Brad Lander
Safe driver discount? New vehicle discount?
- [16:59]
Jane Coston
Storage discount? How many discounts will you stack up? Tap the banner or visit usaa.com autodiscounts restrictions apply. Here's what else we're following today. Head of Lines hey everybody, I guess you want a progress report. I don't know. Speaker Mike Johnson found out just how much everyone seems to hate President Trump's big Republican spending bill debacle disaster adventure on Wednesday. Truly, the only bipartisan thing to come out of it is mutual disgust for very different reasons. It's close to 9pm Eastern right now at the time of this recording, and there is no vote yet. Pressure was put back in the House to hold a vote on Trump's heinous tax and spending cuts package, or as we are now going to call it, the bill that hates poor people. But Johnson, as always, tried to put a positive spin on the clusterfuck that is the Republican caucus. We are working through everybody's issues and making sure that we can secure this vote I feel very positive about the progress. We've had lots of great conversations. I've met with individuals and groups all day long, as has the President, who's fully engaged as well, trying to convince everybody this is the very best product that we can produce. I bet it is. The very best product you can produce. I bet it is. Anyway, the Senate approved the measure by the skin of its teeth Tuesday after Vice President J.D. vance had to cast a tie breaking vote. Remember, we're recording Wednesday night Eastern time and the GOPCAT fight is ongoing. Several Republicans raised concerns over Senate changes that could mean steeper cuts to Medicaid and an ever increasing deficit. Yes, you heard that correctly. The Senate version of the bill was so terrible, House Republicans actually think they went too far. Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio Cortez of New York took to the floor to remind Americans and her colleagues what the legislation is really about. This bill represents in the text of this bill the largest and greatest loss of health care in American history. 17 million Americans will lose their health care on this bill. Not undocumented people, not, quote, unquote, the disgusting term illegal, but 17 million Americans. This is a fluid situation and anything can happen between now and the wee hours of the morning. But as of now, still, that looming, self imposed July 4th deadline is hanging over the GOP's head. If Republicans want to please their MAGA overlord, they'll have to get the big, beautiful bill to the president's desk by Friday. A New York jury convicted disgraced rat mogul Sean Diddy Combs of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, but acquitted him on the more serious sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges. Douglas Wigdor, Cassie Ventura's attorney, commented on Wednesday's verdict in the trial against her former partner. We're pleased that he's finally been held.
- [19:52]
Brad Lander
Responsible for two federal crimes, something that he's never faced in his life. He still faces substantial jail time. Of course, we would have liked to have seen a conviction on the sex.
- [20:04]
Jane Coston
Crimes in rico, but we understand beyond.
- [20:06]
Brad Lander
A reasonable doubt is a high standard and we're just pleased that he still faces substantial jail time.
- [20:14]
Jane Coston
Combs was denied bail and will return to Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention center to await sentencing with convicted crypto fraudsters Sam Bankman fried and alleged UnitedHealthcare CEO murderer Luigi Mangione. And in case you forgot, MDC is notorious for its inhumane conditions. While Combs could face up to 20 years in prison, the verdict is seen as a win for Diddy and his team. He was reportedly applauded as he left the courtroom and supporters gathered outside the courthouse in lower Manhattan. Combs was indicted in 2024 by federal prosecutors who accused him of running a criminal enterprise that facilitated his abuse and exploitation of women in so called freak offs, among other alleged unlawful activities. His high profile trial lasted for seven weeks and included testimony from Combs, former girlfriends, employees and fellow celebrities.
- [21:02]
Brad Lander
Today's ruling marks a major victory for reproductive freedom following the uncertainty and harm to women's health that have resulted from the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
- [21:12]
Jane Coston
That was Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Call announcing Wednesday that the state Supreme Court ruled a nearly 200 year old law does not ban abortion in the state. The 1849 statute made it a felony for anyone to quote, destroy the life of an unborn child except for the pregnant person or doctor in the case of an emergency. While the law was never officially repealed, it was nullified in 1973 by the United States Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade. That was until this seemingly woman hating court got its hands on it in 2022. That was when the court overturned Roe, throwing Wisconsin into a period of legal ambiguity. Wednesday's 4:3 decision fell along party lines upholding Wisconsinites right to abortion care finally some good news.
- [21:56]
Brad Lander
And now UPenn one of the most well known offenders of.
- [22:00]
Jane Coston
Title IX has agreed to change its athletics policy to ensure that no female.
- [22:07]
Brad Lander
Athlete will ever have to compete against.
- [22:10]
Jane Coston
Or suffer the indignity of being forced to share an intimate facility who is a biological male. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced on Tuesday that the University of Pennsylvania entered into a quote, resolution agreement to resolve its so called Title IX violations. Those alleged read bullshit violations. Well earlier this year the Trump administration opened an investigation into Penn as part of its crackdown on transgender athletes in sports. The case focused on a swimmer named Leah Thomas. She last competed for the university in 2022 when she became the first openly transgender athlete to win an NCA Division 1 title. The Education Department's Office for Civil Rights concluded in April that Penn violated Title IX and gave it an ultimatum. Penn said in a statement it would change its policies to be, quote, consistent with the federal government's current interpretation of Title IX and current NCAA policies. So what does that really mean? It means stripping Thomas of her accolades. The university's website now has a note underneath the women's all time school records that reads, quote, competing under eligibility rules in effect at the time, Lia Thomas set program records in the 100, 200 and 500 freestyle during the 2021-2022 season. Yes, because that tiny one liner tucked into the bottom of Penn's stats makes up for kissing Trump's ring. And that before we go, if you're not subscribed to Friends of the Pod, what are you waiting for? Subscribe now to unlock the latest episode of Polar Coaster, where Dan Pfeiffer breaks down what the polls are saying about Trump's so called big beautiful bill. He explains how the bill still managed to pass the Senate and why it's a political and policy disaster. Plus, Dan talks about Zahra Mamdani's big primary win in New York City and how the 2026 midterms are shaping up. To hear the full conversation, subscribe to friendsofthepod@crooked.com friendsnow that's all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, Leave a review, Enjoy the long weekend at don't get hurt by fireworks and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading, I'm not just about how I still love my country, but I do not love the fact that nearly 15,000 people were treated in the ER last year for fireworks injuries like me. What a Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe@cricut.com subscribe I'm Jayden Coastin and we're off for the holiday tomorrow, so be safe, have fun and have some blueberry cobbler. See you Monday. What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It's recorded and mixed by Desmond Taylor. Our associate producer is Emily Foer. Our producer is Michelle Aloy. Our video editor is Joseph Dutra. Our video producer is Johanna Case. We had production help today from Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Sean Ali, Tyler Hill and Laura Newcombe. Our senior producer is Erika Morrison and our senior Vice President of News and Politics is Adrienne Hill. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka. Our production staff is proudly unionized with the Writers Guild of America East.
- [25:43]
Brad Lander
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