Zohran Mamdani, the new Wonderboy of America By Justice Katju

Much of the world has become spellbound and mesmerized, and gone gaga over the victory of Zohran Mamdani in the New York Mayor primary election, hailing him as the new wonderboy of America, who would be a game changer, bringing a much needed revolution in American politics. Since New York is traditionally a Democratic state, it is very likely he will be elected as the next Mayor of New York.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75r7r07ndno

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/mamdanis-stunning-upset-in-new-yorks-democratic-mayoral-primary-carries-risks-rewards-for-national-democrats/article69738701.ece

Many people think a new age of prosperity will arise in New York, and later in many parts of the USA, after he takes over as the new Mayor. I, however, have grave doubts about this, and regard him as just a demagogue and soapbox orator, who will sooner or later come a cropper.

On October 23, 2024, Mamdani, 33 years old, announced his candidacy for Mayor of New York City in 2025. His platform included support for free city buses and a rent freeze in rent-stabilized housing. Mamdani also wants the city government to operate five grocery stores—one in each of New York’s five boroughs—to drive down grocery prices. If elected, Mamdani would be New York’s first Muslim mayor.

Senator Bernie Sanders endorsed Mamdani, saying: “Our nation faces a fundamental choice: Will we continue with a corporate-dominated politics driven by billionaires, or will we build a grass-roots movement fueled by everyday people, committed to fighting oligarchy, authoritarianism, and kleptocracy ?” He reiterated his support for Mamdani on the platform X, with a post reading, “At this dangerous moment in history, status quo politics isn’t good enough. We need new leadership that is prepared to stand up to powerful corporate interests & fight for the working class ”.

Mamdani has advocated capping rent increases, strengthening tenant protections, and creating a Social Housing Development Agency that would build publicly owned affordable housing. He wants to build 200,000 new units of affordable, rent-stabilized homes over the next 10 years and double the amount of spending to rehabilitate homes for the city’s 400,000 public housing tenants. 

Mamdani supports raising New York City’s minimum wage to $30 per hour by 2030.

He supports an increase in corporate taxes in New York State from 7.25% to 11.5%. He also supports a new 2% increase for income tax on city residents who earn more than $1 million a year, to raise $20 billion to fund tuition-free CUNY and SUNy schools, statewide universal childcare, a subway fare freeze, free MTA buses, and tenant protections.

His other schemes are given in this link

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zohran_Mamdani

Now promising the moon and freebies in election campaigns by politicians are nothing new. Indira Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India, gave the slogan ” Gharibi hatao ” ( Abolish poverty ) during the Indian parliamentary elections of 1971, but this became ” Gharib hatao ” ( Abolish the poor ) once the parliamentary elections were over and she became Prime Minister again, imposing a fake ‘Emergency’ in 1975 in which tens of thousands of Indians were jailed on fabricated charges, and houses of numerous poor persons demolished. .

Tony Blair, former Prime Minister of UK, made similar tall promises during the 1997 elections ( calling it the New Labour ), promises which were never kept, and instead he joined USA in the invasion of Iraq on the false pretext that it had weapons of mass destruction.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/feb/11/labour.uk

Election promises are only ‘jumlas’ ( idiomatic expressions ), and are only for winning the elections, but quickly forgotten once the elections are over.

America is ruled by its big business class, and big business will certainly oppose tooth and nail increasing its taxes ( which Mamdani has proposed ). Then where will Mamdani get all the money he needs for his schemes ? He surely cannot increase taxes on the middle and poor class, whose plight he has promised to ameliorate

Mamdani has therefore two choices on becoming the Mayor 

(1) Either he forgets his election promises ( or makes some cosmetic, peripheral, trivial and superficial reforms )

(2) He seriously tries to implement them, by increasing taxes on the rich.

If he pursues the second course, three things are likely to happen :

(a) The US Supreme Court, whose majority ( many of them Trump appointed Judges ) will strike down these measures as unconstitutional

(b) Huge demonstrations and protests, organized behind the scene by the big corporations, will create a situation in which Mamdani will be forced to resign, or

(c) Mamdani will be physically eliminated, as happened to President Allende of Chile in 1973 when he tried to introduce sweeping economic reforms like nationalization of industries and land

https://history.state.gov/milestones/1969-1976/allende

I am sorry to pour cold water on the faces of pro-Mamdani folks, but they needed to be awakened to truth and realities