Brian Lehrer quizzes Mamdani on how his ‘Not On Our Dime’ bill would have affected synagogues

This piece first ran as The Countdown, our daily newsletter rounding up all the developments in the New York City mayor’s race. Sign up here to get it in your inbox. The election is in 88 days.

🕍 Mamdani on the hotseat over his proposed policies

• Zohran Mamdani was quizzed about how he would use the mayoralty to influence Israel in an interview with WNYC’s Brian Lehrer on Thursday.

• Lehrer asked Mamdani about his “Not On Our Dime” bill from May 2023, which proposed blocking New York nonprofits from supporting Israeli settlements in the West Bank, but failed to pass the New York State Assembly.

• “We had a caller concerned that you want to fine or sue his synagogue for supporting what he considers non-political humanitarian groups,” said Lehrer, who is Jewish. Offering examples, he said, “Hatzalah has a local branch with significant ambulance presence in New York. ZAKA describes itself as emergency response, rescue, and recovery operations around the world.”

• Mamdani said his bill sought to align New York with international law and sanctions against Israeli settlement. When pressed on the fear that synagogues would be penalized, he said, “Of course, this legislation is not in any way pertaining to local synagogues and these kinds of fines.”

• Mamdani drew a contrast between his advocacy for Palestinians and the pro-Israel records of his opponents, pointing out that Andrew Cuomo joined Israeli Benjamin Netanyahu’s legal defense team last year.

🔯 ‘Jews for Zohran’ cheer Mamdani

• Later last night, Mamdani joined a “Jews for Zohran” event hosted by Jewish Voice for Peace Action. Among those who can be seen in the video is Rabbi Abby Stein, a longtime JVP activist.

• Mamdani thanked the prominent anti-Zionist group for granting him its first municipal endorsement. (We covered how it recently restructured to focus on political lobbying.)

• “We could not stand up for freedom and justice and safety and say, ‘except for’ — whomever, whether it be Palestinians or anyone else,” he said to the cheering crowd.

👀 Can Cuomo out-Mamdani Mamdani?

• Cuomo isn’t just watching Mamdani’s social media savvy and taking his own campaign to X, Instagram and TikTok.

• He’s also seeking to one-up Mamdani’s free transportation plan. In a policy unveiled on Thursday, Cuomo proposed fully subsidizing subway and bus fares for poorer New Yorkers, which he pegged at $140 million annually.

• He also countered Mamdani’s proposal for city-run grocery stores, saying he would subsidize $100 worth of food purchases a month for households that didn’t qualify for federal nutrition assistance, a plan he said would cost $200 million a year.

• According to a survey by New York Solidarity Network, 76% of Jewish New Yorkers are basing their vote on local issues like affordability and crime. Another 17% said they were centering their future mayor’s views on Israel.