Donald Trump made an unannounced stop in New York City on Monday evening during his two-day trip for the United Nations General Assembly, visiting Gracie Mansion on the Upper East Side to meet with Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Following the hour-long meeting, a reporter questioned Trump about his decision to bar CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House and asked whether Mamdani had given him any advice.
Trump gestured toward the crowd of journalists assembled outside and replied: “They said they were going to boycott me but they never boycott me.”
He then delivered a five-word taunt: “Look at all that press!”
Trump’s remarks came only hours after a chaotic ribbon-cutting ceremony on the White House lawn. Video of the event was broadcast around the world, but there was no audio after major networks boycotted the president’s announcement of a new helipad.
The White House television pool, which includes ABC, CBS, Fox, CNN and NBC, had earlier announced that it would suspend coverage of all presidential events in solidarity with journalists who were barred by the administration over the weekend.
CNN, MS NOW and Politico filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration on Monday morning, accusing it of violating their First Amendment rights after their reporters were denied entry to the White House.
Standing alongside Trump at the podium, Mamdani avoided endorsing the president’s criticism. “I told the president that we’re going to have all of the members of the press here on the lawn and that is something that I believe in. As everyone, no matter the opinion or the critique, that we engage,” Mamdani said.
Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speak to reporters during a press conference following their meeting at Gracie Mansion in New York City, US, September 21
Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speak to reporters
Trump and Mamdani also said they had discussed a proposal that could bring about 12,000 homes and 30,000 jobs to New York. The plan could ultimately create an entirely new neighborhood on the site of a major rail yard in Sunnyside, Queens.
Mamdani said the two sides had agreed to open a new level of dialogue about developing the site, a project that would require substantial cooperation and investment.
Trump also claimed that he had helped influence Mamdani’s decision to move into Gracie Mansion.
According to Trump, the mayor had been uncertain about relocating to the “luxurious Gracie Mansion” until Trump advised him to live there.
Trump spoke favorably of Mamdani, saying the mayor “certainly got potential.”
Ahead of his arrival, Trump called the mayor’s official residence “one of his favorite places in the world” and recalled spending “lots of hours there over the years” with previous New York mayors.
“It will be interesting to see how it looks now, invited by Mayor Mamdani. Look forward to it,” Trump wrote.
The meeting marked the third face-to-face encounter between Trump and Mamdani, but it was their first meeting in New York City.
President Donald Trump, riding inside ‘The Beast,’ arriving at Gracie Mansion for a meeting with New York mayor Zohran Mamdani on Monday evening
Trump described Mamdani as a ‘very rational person’ and said he could ‘surprise some conservative people,’ during their first meeting in the Oval Office back in November 2025
The two previously met at the White House in November 2025, shortly after Mamdani’s election, and again in February.
Mamdani’s communications director, Anna Bahr, said Monday’s meeting would focus on ‘issues affecting New York City and New Yorkers.’
The White House confirmed the meeting but did not provide additional details.
And the meeting marks a striking shift in a relationship that began with very public hostility toward one an other.
During Mamdani’s 2025 mayoral campaign, Trump repeatedly attacked the Democratic socialist, at one point calling him a ‘100% Communist Lunatic.’
Trump also criticized Mamdani’s political agenda and warned about the potential consequences of his policies for New York.
Mamdani, on the campaign was sharply critical of Trump and his administration, particularly over immigration enforcement.
During the campaign, he called ICE a ‘rogue agency’ and said that if Trump pursued his promised mass deportation effort in New York, he would ‘have to get through me’ to do so.’
During Mamdani’s mayoral campaign, he called ICE a ‘rogue agency’ and said that if Trump pursued his promised mass deportation effort in New York, he would ‘have to get through me’ to do so’
He also accused Trump of using the threat of federal enforcement to intimidate New Yorkers.
But the tone changed considerably after Mamdani won the election.
When the two first met in the Oval Office back in November 2025, their interaction was notably cordial.
Trump described Mamdani as a ‘very rational person’ and said he could ‘surprise some conservative people.’
Trump also said he would be happy if Mamdani succeeded in running New York.
The two met again at the White House in February, with housing among the issues discussed.
Mamdani has said the pair remain in contact by phone and text, although he has declined to discuss how frequently they communicate or what they talk about.
Trump’s visit is particularly notable because presidential visits to Gracie Mansion are rare.
The last sitting president to visit was Ronald Reagan in 1981, meaning Trump’s meeting with Mamdani marks the first presidential visit to the mayor’s residence in 45 years.
Trump’s week in New York City features high-level diplomacy, with the United Nations General Assembly bringing world leaders from across the globe to Manhattan.
The president is due to address the UN on Tuesday and is holding a string of meetings with foreign leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi.
Talks on Iran, the Middle East and other international issues are expected to take place before Trump heads back to Washington later in the week for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House.
