Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he would do everything in his power to stop Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at polling places in his city.
Host Kristen Welker said, “Let’s talk about ICE. You just referenced ICE. In the midst of the government shutdown, President Trump deployed ICE agents to airports across America including right here in New York. In the wake of that, former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon suggested that there could be a test run for sending ICE to polling places in the midterms. What will you do if ICE agents show up to polling places in the midterm elections?”
Mamdani said, “I will do everything in my power to ensure that that is not the case. I think it speaks to a vision of this country where democracy is something to be suppressed, as opposed to something to be protected. And I think that what we are seeing time and time again, is an attempt to utilize ICE for all of the other functions of government that Republicans are unable to fund because they don’t want to ensure that these kinds of quality of services continue across the country.”
Welker said, “And I know you’re not going to get into specifics of your conversations with President Trump, but have you directly raised this issue with him? Have you said to President Trump that you don’t want ICE agents here ahead of the midterms?”
Mamdani said, “I’ve said to the president ICE has nothing to do with elections. I’ve said to him time and time again that ICE is a cruel and inhumane agency, and that here in New York City, we are focused on delivering public safety. I talk about affordability every single day.”
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