It was another rough night for New York City’s far-left mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani, who found himself completely unable to explain how he plans to fund the $10 billion in “freebies” promised under his socialist agenda. During Thursday night’s debate, Mamdani was repeatedly pressed on how he’d pay for his expansive proposals without raising taxes — especially after Governor Kathy Hochul has made it clear she won’t approve any new tax hikes.
When asked point-blank about the math behind his proposals, Mamdani deflected.
“Look, a lot of people have called even my campaign a non-starter when we first began, and now I stand before you proud to be the Democratic nominee who got the most votes in city primary history,” he said — dodging the actual question entirely.
Pressed again, the self-proclaimed socialist offered only vague promises of “saving money” without explaining where those savings would come from. In other words, lots of rhetoric, zero substance.
Meanwhile, Hochul — facing her own re-election next year and wary of alienating moderate voters — has already stated she has no intention of raising taxes. That leaves Mamdani’s grand socialist wishlist unfunded, unsupported, and frankly unrealistic. His proposals, which total nearly 10% of New York City’s entire annual budget, would require either massive tax increases or a magic money tree that no economist has ever discovered.
Mamdani also took heat from former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who challenged his idea to freeze rents across nearly a million rent-stabilized apartments in New York City. Cuomo pointed out the logistical nightmare such a freeze would cause, though at Mamdani’s campaign watch party in the East Village, few seemed to care about details. According to reports, the crowd at the bar d.b.a. paid attention only when Mamdani spoke — and even then, the mood was more bar chatter than policy discussion.
Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa took the opportunity to highlight that Mamdani’s rent-freeze plan wouldn’t even cover residents in NYCHA housing, leaving some of the city’s poorest families out in the cold — literally. But as usual, Mamdani’s supporters appeared uninterested in the facts, preferring slogans over solutions.
Thursday night’s debate, hosted by WNBC at Rockefeller Center, was the first of two scheduled face-offs before Election Day. The next will be aired on Spectrum NY1, where Mamdani will likely face the same uncomfortable questions about how to pay for his pie-in-the-sky policies.
Here’s the truth: Mamdani’s socialist agenda is long on promises and short on arithmetic. With no plan to fund his “free” programs — and no support from state leadership to raise taxes — it’s clear his proposals are little more than political fantasy.
New Yorkers deserve a mayor who understands fiscal responsibility, not one who treats the city’s $100 billion budget like Monopoly money.
