President Trump invited lefty Mayor Zohran Mamdani to visit him at the White House to “see how I work” after a meeting at Gracie Mansion Monday, a lip reader revealed.
“What I will say, we’ll look after you, but as I say, you’re doing great,” Trump said, expert lip reader Jeremy Freeman told The Post.
“I’ll look after you, you look after the New Yorkers,” the president said. “And we can both make it work. I wanna support you, help me. Come with me to the White House – see how I work.”
President Trump meets Mayor Zohran Mamdani at Gracie Mansion in New York, Sept. 21, 2026. ZUMAPRESS.com
The 90-minute meeting focused on immigration and a Queens housing project for which Mamdani is seeking federal help, with Trump also sharing memories of Gracie Mansion.
It was the first presidential visit to the mayor’s official residence since Ronald Reagan visited Ed Koch in 1981 to tout federal investments in a local roadway project.
The Sunnyside Yards affordable housing project was revived by Mamdani earlier this year after lying dormant for decades — but it needs an infusion of federal dollars to help get it done.
“We appreciate the president’s commitment to the city,” Mamdani told reporters at a briefing after the meeting. “And today, you know, the president shared many of his memories of having been to Gracie Mansion before, having been out here, as well on the lawn. And we appreciated the conversation of how we can work together to deliver a lower cost of living for New Yorkers.”
The socialist mayor and the president, a conservative Republican, struck up an unusual friendship after a White House meeting in February, with Trump telling reporters, “I think he’s a nice guy.”
Mamdani later called the encounter “a productive meeting.”
“I wanna support you, help me. Come with me to the White House – see how I work,” Trump said to Mamdani, according to a lip reader. AFP via Getty Images
“I’m looking forward to building more housing in New York City,” the mayor said after the February Oval Office meeting in a post on X, that also included a doctored pic showing Trump holding two copies of the New York Daily News.
One shows the real 1975 headline, “Ford to City: Drop Dead,” and the other a mocked-up version: ‘Trump to City: Let’s Build.”
The chummy chat was at odds with an initial exchange of barbs that saw Mamdani refer to Trump as a “fascist” and a “despot,” while the president referred to the mayor as a communist.
New York City Mayor Mamdani and Trump walk toward Gracie Mansion after speaking with members of the press in New York, Sept. 21, 2026. AFP via Getty Images
But following Monday’s Big Apple reunion, Trump again had kind words for Mamdani.
“I’ve seen it with numerous different mayors, and I said some great ones and some not so great ones,” he told Mamdani in front of reporters.
“So, hopefully you’re going to be a great one. I’ll be able to say you’re going to be a great one, and you’re off to a good start.”
Trump’s stopover at Gracie Mansion came with the president’s scheduled speech before the UN General Assembly.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.