A group of preschoolers at a child care center in the Bronx gathered on a rug for a memorable story time on Saturday with Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former President Barack Obama.<\/p>\n
The pair sang an animated rendition of \u201cWheels on the Bus,\u201d read a picture book about the importance of community and ribbed each other about whose city had the better pizza.<\/p>\n
Mr. Obama read aloud about building a sand castle and stopped to ask: \u201cWho has made a sand castle before?\u201d<\/p>\n
Many tiny hands shot up, and Mr. Mamdani took the opportunity to plug his affordability agenda, the centerpiece of his campaign last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re trying to build more housing in New York City,\u201d the mayor said.<\/p>\n
The event \u2014 Mr. Mamdani\u2019s and Mr. Obama\u2019s first public appearance together, and one that came shortly after the mayor marked his 100th day in office<\/a> \u2014 brought together two stars of the Democratic Party to showcase a critical part of that affordability agenda: universal child care<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mr. Mamdani is moving to expand free child care to 2,000 2-year-olds this fall. He has enlisted famous friends, including the rapper Cardi B<\/a> and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez<\/a>, to generate support for his plan and to urge families to apply.<\/p>\n Mr. Obama did not endorse Mr. Mamdani in the mayor\u2019s race last year. But the former president called him in November<\/a>, shortly before Mr. Mamdani\u2019s victory, to offer his support.<\/p>\n On Saturday, Mr. Obama thanked the teachers at the Learning Through Play Pre-K Center, which is part of the city\u2019s free preschool program for 3- and 4-year-olds, and endorsed Mr. Mamdani\u2019s child care plan.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is what we need \u2014 making an investment in these amazing kids,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Mr. Mamdani and Mr. Obama had a private conversation, but the mayor\u2019s office declined to provide details \u2014 other than a statement saying they \u201cdiscussed the mayor\u2019s vision for this city\u201d and the importance of child care.<\/p>\n Mr. Mamdani, a democratic socialist, has grappled with major budget challenges<\/a> in his first months in office and resistance to parts of his agenda, including free buses. He has shown an aptitude for charming allies and adversaries, including President Trump, whom he has met with twice at the White House<\/a>.<\/p>\n The visit with Mr. Obama, which was first reported by Politico<\/a>, was no different. As Mr. Obama read the book \u201cAlone & Together\u201d by \u00c9milie Chazerand, the former president asked the children: \u201cWho likes pizza?\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Mamdani put Mr. Obama, whose political roots are in Chicago, on the spot: \u201cLet me ask you guys a very important question. What\u2019s better: New York City pizza or Chicago pizza? Mr. President, what do you say?\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Obama chose diplomacy: \u201cYou know what, we\u2019re in New York. I\u2019m not going to talk about your pizza.\u201d<\/p>\n Then, when the class asked Mr. Mamdani, 34, to sing the song \u201cSoda Pop\u201d from the film \u201cKPop Demon Hunters,\u201d the mayor acknowledged he did not know the lyrics. Mr. Obama, 64, put his hand on the mayor\u2019s back.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want you to know that it\u2019s great that you just made the mayor feel really old,\u201d Mr. Obama said.<\/p>\n \u201cIncredibly old,\u201d Mr. Mamdani laughed.<\/p>\n When Mr. Obama called Mr. Mamdani<\/a> in November, the former president offered to serve as a \u201csounding board.\u201d He also spoke admiringly of Mr. Mamdani\u2019s campaign, making light of his own past political missteps and noting how few of them Mr. Mamdani made under such a bright spotlight.<\/p>\n The call came at a time when some Democrats were reluctant to embrace Mr. Mamdani<\/a> because of his criticism of Israel. Mr. Mamdani also criticized Mr. Obama<\/a> in 2013 on social media, comments that one of his opponents sought to highlight<\/a> during the campaign.<\/p>\n On Saturday, the leaders had an easy rapport. Mr. Obama, a music fan, compared Mr. Mamdani, a former C-list rapper known as Mr. Cardamom, to DJ Khaled.<\/p>\n The former president chuckled when the mayor responded by citing one of DJ Khaled\u2019s catchphrases<\/a>: \u201canother one.\u201d<\/p>\n