President Trump criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Sunday evening after the pair were seen chuckling during Friday’s ceremony honoring the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks.
“I think it’s terrible,” Trump told reporters while departing Shannon Airport in Ireland. “It’s not a place to be laughing, especially in that case.”
“I thought it was terrible,” the president said again. “The fact that they were laughing together at a very important part of the ceremony was inappropriate.”
The moment involving Mamdani and AOC occurred as grieving relatives read the names of loved ones killed in the al Qaeda attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. The footage quickly drew condemnation from conservatives and Republicans.
“Why the f–k are these two laughing?!?” Meghan McCain, the former “The View” host and daughter of the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), wrote on X.
“How the hell do you laugh while the names of those murdered on 9/11 are being read aloud? Why would you do so?” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) asked.
A source told The Post that the two left-leaning politicians shared a laugh after Mamdani was left standing alone at the ceremony when Gov. Kathy Hochul, state Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Chuck Schumer departed early.
“Nobody wanted to be by him,” the source said. “It was awkward.”
The source also noted that Mamdani, attending the ceremony for the first time as mayor, remained until its conclusion and spoke with victims’ families. Still, the source acknowledged that any appearance of inappropriate behavior was bound to face intense scrutiny.
“He doesn’t help his case,” the source said. “This guy doesn’t distance himself from people who say America deserved to be attacked.”
Michael Ragusa, who served as head of security for former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, argued that the widely shared video was being viewed without its full context.
“The camera just caught her greeting him hello. Multiple other politicians were laughing and joking behind me. Republicans and Democrats,” Ragusa wrote on X. “And for the record I am a life long republican [sic] who has been very critical of these two.”
Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy
