President Donald Trump invited New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani to the White House after their Gracie Mansion meeting, according to a lip reader, as both discussed city issues.
WEBDESK – MEDIABITES
President Donald Trump invited New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to visit the White House and “see how I work” following their September 21 meeting at Gracie Mansion, according to an interpretation by professional lip reader Jeremy Freeman reported by the New York Post.
The reported exchange came after a roughly 90-minute meeting between Trump and Mamdani, who have sharply different political positions but have developed a more cooperative relationship in recent months.
According to the lip-reading interpretation, Trump told Mamdani: “I’ll look after you, you look after the New Yorkers,” before encouraging the mayor to visit Washington and observe his work at the White House.
The New York Post identified Freeman as the lip reader behind the interpretation. Because the exchange was reconstructed from visual footage rather than an official audio transcript, the wording should be treated as a reported interpretation rather than a verified transcript. The White House had not immediately responded to the Post’s request for comment as of Tuesday.
Housing and immigration at center of meeting
The meeting focused on several issues affecting New York City, including immigration and a proposed housing development at Sunnyside Yard in Queens. Mamdani has sought federal assistance for the ambitious project.
The proposed Sunnyside Yard development has been discussed as a potential source of thousands of new homes and jobs, although the project still faces financial, planning and bureaucratic hurdles. A separate report said Mamdani did not secure a firm federal funding commitment during the meeting.
Immigration was also part of the discussion. The meeting came as Mamdani continued talks with federal officials over issues affecting New York’s immigrant communities.
Unusual political relationship
The interaction was notable because Trump and Mamdani occupy very different positions within U.S. politics. Despite those differences, their public exchanges have become more cordial since an earlier White House meeting in February.
Trump has publicly praised Mamdani during their recent encounters, saying he hoped the mayor would become a “great” mayor and describing him as being off to a good start.
Mamdani subsequently described the Gracie Mansion encounter as a “productive meeting.”
The latest reported invitation could provide another opportunity for the two administrations to discuss federal support for New York projects, although neither side has publicly announced a specific White House visit resulting from the exchange.
