NYC Mayor Mamdani meets Trump to discuss housing, secures student's release

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani met with President Donald Trump Thursday for what he described as a "productive" discussion focused on expanding housing development in the nation's largest city. "I had a productive meeting with President Trump this afternoon. I'm looking forward to building more housing in New York City," Mamdani announced on social media following the White House visit.

Presidential Praise Despite Policy Differences

The meeting followed Tuesday's State of the Union address, where Trump referred to Mamdani as a "nice guy" while acknowledging their ideological differences. "Even the new communist mayor of New York City—I think he's a nice guy, actually, speaking to him a lot. Bad policy, but nice guy," Trump told the joint session of Congress. The comments underscored the cordial personal relationship between the two leaders despite their divergent political philosophies.

Student Detention Resolution

In a separate social media post, Mamdani revealed that he had also spoken with Trump by phone regarding Elaina Aghayeva, a Columbia University student detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who entered a campus residential building Thursday morning. "Just got off the phone with President Trump. In our meeting earlier, I shared my concerns about Columbia student Elaina Aghayeva, who was detained by ICE this morning," Mamdani said. The mayor subsequently reported that Trump informed him Aghayeva would be released "imminently," demonstrating the administration's responsiveness to individual cases amid broader immigration enforcement operations.