Mamdani's dangerous, illegal threat
The NYC Democrat says he'd conduct an extrajudicial arrest. Why is the media ignoring this?
It’s a five-alarm fire for democracy, and a powerful sign of how people on both ends of the political spectrum are increasingly okay with authoritarian, anti-democratic moves. But the mainstream media is ignoring it.
Zohran Mamdani — the winner of New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary, who has been making the media rounds and hailed as a new leader — has vowed that if given the chance, he would carry out an arrest without the legal right to do so. Learn about it in the new episode of They Stand Corrected:
Yes, Mamdani admits that it would be illegal. And in a powerful example of “rules for thee but not for me,” he’s making this threat while attacking Trump and ICE for extrajudicial arrests.
Mamdani’s threatened action would violate the Constitution — specifically the Fourth Amendment. As I explain in this episode:
If you're thinking, "What? Really?" I don't blame you. The media has totally blown it on this… Democrats’ support for Mamdani is a huge gift to the Republican Party. Anytime any Democrat speaks out about Trump and ICE arresting people without a warrant, any Republican can just say, “You support a guy who has announced he would do that. And he called it courageous.”
Mandani tried drawing a ludicrous comparison to same-sex marriage. In this episode, I share archival sound from a court battle.
The media’s failure to tell you about this speaks to widespread confusion about “international law,” which I did a full episode about. It also shows that journalists are willing to look the other way when they like a government figure and dislike the person he’s targeting. In the new episode, you’ll hear why the New York Times op-ed team has been worst of all on this.
What democracy requires
The case here involves someone whom many people have strong feelings about: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But as I explain, democracy only works if the rules apply to everyone. A fundamental principle of democracy is that government officials cannot grant themselves additional powers.
This is how democracy dies. When people in positions of authority refuse to follow laws that limit their power — and are met with applause.
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On another note…
How will the “One Big Beautiful” bill affect your life? I’m working on that for next week. Send your questions. And right now, check out sponsor USAFacts — including a stunning chart of the debt ceiling over time. (It looks like the Himalayas.)
More on this new episode in the next newsletter.
JL