In a video clip that’s exploded in popularity online, President Donald Trump made it clear, in no uncertain terms, that should New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani should interfere with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arresting illegal immigrants, he’ll pay a heavy price.
During a press event that occurred back in the summer of 2025, but has maintained relevance given Zohran’s comments about illegal immigration and ICE, a reporter asked President Trump what he would do if Mamdani made good on his word and attempted to stop ICE from completing its mission to deport those who are in the country illegally. The president responded like a total boss, saying, “Then we’ll arrest him.”
The reporter kicked things off by saying, “Mr. President, in your beloved New York City, your beloved New York City, may well be led by a communist soon, Zohran Mamdani, who in his nomination speech said he will defy ICE, and will not allow ICE to arrest criminal aliens in New York City. Your message to communist Zohran Mamdani?”
The president, sporting his trademark red “Make America Great Again” cap, answered with a short and sweet statement, saying, “Then we’ll have to arrest him.” Such is a sentiment that Tom Homan and others in the Trump Administration have echoed, refusing to take the socialist, sanctuary city mayor seriously.
Those statements have been necessary because now-Mayor-Elect Mamdani has not at all been shy about his plans to try and thwart the efforts of immigration officials who are carrying out deportation operations in the city, making such statements a staple of his platform during his campaign.
Watch Trump’s epic statement here:
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In fact, Mamdani, the mayor-elect who will be taking office in January, recently stated that officers with the New York City Police Department will not be assisting ICE with operations to deport illegals in the city, following comments from border czar Tom Homan who revealed federal agents would be increasing the intensity of enforcement measures in the city soon.
The mayor-elect’s statement is a follow-through on his campaign promises to ensure that local police are not involved in the carrying out of ICE operations in the Big Apple while he is in office. “We can never go back to the days where Eric Adams would go on national television and open the door to the NYPD handling civil immigration enforcement. That can never even be entertained,” Mamdani went on to say during an interview with local television outlet PIX11 News. “People are living in fear.”
According to Fox News, Mamdani then said, “And what we will ensure is that the NYPD will be delivering public safety, not assisting ICE in their attempts to fulfill the administration’s goal of creating the single largest deportation force in American history.”
In October, just a few short weeks before the election, Mamdani sat down for an interview with PIX on Politics host Dan Mannarino where he weighed in on whether the NYPD should arrest ICE agents who “break the law” in the city while carrying out their operations.
“My focus is on ensuring the rule of law in the city. What we have seen from ICE is that they are a reckless entity, one that cares little for the rule of law in the U.S., for the people who they are supposed to serve. I very much agree with the words that have been shared by other Democratic leaders across this country, including Gov. Pritzker, which is the fact that no one is above the law,” Mamdani explained, according to PIX11. “Whether that be these ICE agents, whether that be Donald Trump, everyone should be held accountable… if anyone is breaking the law, they should be held to account, and that includes ICE agents.”
During his campaign, the mayor-elect referred to ICE as a “rogue agency, one that has no interest in laws, no interest in order,” in an interview with former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan in June. After securing the Democratic Party nomination, Mamdani promised he would work to prevent ICE from performing more deportations.
” … It’s where the mayor will use their power to reject Donald Trump’s fascism. To stop ICE agents from deporting our neighbors. And to govern our city as a model for the Democratic Party. A party where we fight for working people with no apology,” Mamdani stated in a speech delivered on June 24. However, Mamdani not only faces difficulties from the Trump administration itself, but will also struggle to stop ICE within immigration courts, according to Newsweek.