After meeting with Mamdani, will President Trump still send in National Guard and ICE? : NPR

Zohran Mamdani, the new mayor of New York, has had a rocky relationship with President Trump. He called the president fascist. Trump called back to him “little communist mayor” and warned that he might send in the National Guard. Administration also said This will expand ICE operations in the city.

But when the two leaders finally recently met face to face To the surprise of many, it was cordial. Some might even say warm.

“We agree on a lot more than I would have thought. I want him to do a great job, and we will help him do a great job,” the president said. Soon the Internet was flooded with memes of the president looking at Mamdani with admiration. The next day New York Post the cover said “I love you, Mom.”

But many New Yorkers say they take it all with a grain of salt and remain wary.

“The president says one thing today and another tomorrow,” says one street vendor outside a Queens subway station. “You don't know what's real anymore.”

What she does know is that she's seen a surge in immigration enforcement lately, so she asked NPR not to reveal her name. She doesn't have documents and she's worried.

She posts here every morning around 4:30 and sells refreshments and breakfast. A few weeks ago, shortly after the installation, several ICE agents jumped out of an unmarked car chasing two workers who had just bought something to eat, she said.

She ran into the building behind her, locked the door and hid on the stairs until it was all over.

This merchant says she loves Mamdani, but she's afraid the president will punish the city for electing her. democratic socialist. She fears New York will turn into Chicago or Los Angeles, two cities that have been hit by large-scale immigration raids.

This is a common sentiment in New York these days. The day after the White House meeting, President Trump said that while he has no immediate plans to send troops to New York, he wouldif necessary. NPR reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment and did not receive a response.

Mamdani, in turn, repeated he will protect immigrants in New York.

His team would not grant an interview to NPR, despite numerous requests. But a source close to his transition team, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told NPR that Mamdani is exploring legal strategies locally to limit Trump's actions in New York, including strengthening New York's legal department by adding 200 lawyers.

Rep. Patrick Ryan of the Hudson Valley, a Democrat whose district includes some of New York's northern suburbs, told NPR that one of the lessons from Chicago and Los Angeles is that states can successfully challenge the administration in court. Ryan refers to his background as an Iraq War veteran.

“To come home to your state and your country and see the idea of ​​using American troops against American citizens and American cities is fundamentally un-American. By the way, this is not what young American men and women sign up for,” he says.

He hopes the meeting between Mamdani and Trump has eased tensions. But like the Queens street vendor, he takes it with a grain of salt. According to him, he hopes for the best, but is preparing for the worst.

This is exactly what organizers are doing on the streets.

Karina Kaufman-Gutierrez is deputy director of the advocacy group Street Vendor Project. She says street vendors are among the most vulnerable immigrants in New York. “Street vendors look at the ground, right? They see everything that's happening.”

She hopes the new mayor will be her ally. She says she also believes New York City street vendors are uniquely equipped to withstand ICE's campaign. Many of them, she said, view this as “the next pandemic.”

In fact, the organization is relying on pandemic-era strategies for traders who are afraid to work on the streets during immigration raids. “For example, we have a catering program where people can contact us and we will connect them with a caterer to cater their event.”

She says the new mayor might do make it easier for street vendors, which Mamdani said he will prioritize. He promised to allow thousands of additional applications for vendor licenses and to repeal criminal liability rules.

Meanwhile, in the cold shadow of her stand, a street breakfast vendor looks out onto the busy avenue. She wonders how long this liveliness will last and how long she can endure.

“Three more years,” she says, referring to the Trump administration. “I hope they pass quickly.”