Mamdani describes relationship with Trump as ‘honest, direct and productive’

NEW YORK, United States (MNTV) – Mayor Zohran Mamdani described his working relationship with President Donald Trump as “honest, direct and productive” despite Trump’s recent public criticism of his tax policies, crediting the president for intervening to help secure the release of a Columbia University student detained by ICE.

“I would say that it’s honest, it’s direct, and it’s productive,” Mamdani said on NBC’s Meet the Press, declining to share details of his conversations with Trump out of respect for privacy.

“Those conversations, no matter how they happen, return back to one thing — one of the few things that we have in common — which is our love for New York City and how to deliver for the same city.”

Mamdani credited Trump for helping secure the release of Columbia University student Elmina “Ellie” Aghayeva, who had been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He said the relationship reflects the value of honest engagement, even between ideological opponents. “That honesty means acknowledging places of disagreement. When I was telling him that, I also told him that I believe these ICE raids to be cruel, to be inhumane and to do nothing to serve the stated interests of public safety,” he said.

When asked if he trusted Trump, Mamdani said that trust is part of conversations that “have to continue.”