Slick Mamdani charms Trump as president gushes over 'communist'

Donald Trump and New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani - two generational political rivals - met in the Oval Office Friday.

Speaking to press after the Oval Office meeting, the president appeared to have a touch of the Friday feels as he slapped down questions drawing divides between the two, including a reporter who asked Mamdani about referring to the president as a 'fascist.'

'You can call me it,' Trump said in an extraordinary concession, indicating perhaps the extent to which the young democratic socialist impressed him in their discussion.

Trump, who is a titan of New York real estate, said he hoped that Mamdani would be 'a really great mayor.'

'The better he does, the happier I am,' he added.

The president went as far as saying conservatives are going to be surprised by democratic socialist Mamdani, who rose to power on a wave of support from younger voters frustrated by sky-high property prices.  

'I think he's gonna surprise some conservative people, actually,' Trump said after their meeting. 'And some very liberal people he won't surprise because they already like him.' 

Mamdani, 34, was elected in a landslide result earlier this month. He is widely seen as a next generation leader of the Democratic party.

'I can tell you I am someone who is a democratic socialist,' Mamdani said. 'I've been very open about that, and 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.'

Trump focused primarily on the common ground the two share. 

'I congratulate him, and we talked about some things ... like housing and getting housing built and food and prices and the price of oil,' Trump added. 'We agree on a lot more than I would have thought.'

'Some of his ideas are the same ones I have,' the president said of Mamdani's focus on affordability. 

At times, Mamdani appeared uncomfortable with the president's flattery. Mamdani repeatedly pivoted back to his focus on affordability as the press peppered the two leaders with questions. 

The warm reception was surprising given the two's past attacks against each other.  

Trump repeatedly urged voters not to back the young progressive and endorsed former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on the eve of election day. 

Despite calling Mamdani a 'communist' and a 'lunatic,' the president said Friday morning that he believed the meeting would be cordial. 

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The president even threatened to withhold some federal funds from the city if Zohran was elected, saying, 'If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required, to my beloved first home.'

However, the president's tone completely changed when the two met on Friday. 

The president said he would 'absolutely' live in a Mamdani-run New York City and that he has 'very little doubt' the unlikely pair agree on crime policy. 

'He just retained a great police commissioner,' Trump said of Mamdani selecting Jessica Tisch, a friend of the president's daughter Ivanka Trump.

Mamdani said he spoke to the president about affordability and ICE operations in New York as well as bringing down costs as inflation eats away at middle class earnings. 

On Thursday, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt noted the weight of the meeting between the two rivals. 

'It speaks to the fact that President Trump is willing to meet with anyone and talk to anyone and to try to do what’s right on behalf of the American people whether they live in blue states or red states or blue cities — in a city that’s becoming much more left than I think this president ever anticipated in his many years of living in New York,' she told reporters. 

Though he has relentlessly gone after the young democratic socialist, the two do share commonalities. 

Both have connections to New York City's Queens neighborhood and have devoted followers. 

In private, the president has even reportedly mentioned Mamdani's political prowess, noting how the progressive is charismatic. 

'I know that for tens of thousands of New Yorkers, this meeting is between two very different candidates who they voted for, for the same reason,' Mamdani said of the meeting. 

'They wanted a leader who would take on the cost-of-living crisis that makes it impossible for working people to afford living in the city.'

The mayor-elect has also reportedly sought council ahead of the meeting from top Democrats who have interacted with Trump.