Conventional wisdom says that New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is bluffing.
After all, that’s what a normal, typical politician would do. The United States isn’t a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Neither is Israel. There’s no legal standing for an American politician to order the arrest of a foreign head of state based on an ICC ruling. (In fact, it would directly conflict with established international law, including the United Nations Headquarters Agreement and the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.)
Which is why, conventional wisdom says, Mayor Mamdani is merely virtue-signaling to his left-wing base. One of the mayor’s more memorable 2025 campaign promises was pledging to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for “war crimes” in Gaza.
From the New York Times (Sept. 12, 2025):
Mr. Mamdani had said earlier in the mayor’s race that he would arrest Mr. Netanyahu. In the interview on Thursday, he did not back down and offered new specifics, affirming that he would order the police to make the arrest upon Mr. Netanyahu’s arrival in the city.
“This is something that I intend to fulfill,” Mr. Mamdani said.
Mr. Mamdani, a state assemblyman who leads in the polls ahead of the November election, said that state and local Democrats needed to show that they would take action where the federal government will not. He cited a decision made by Gavin Newsom, now the governor of California, in 2004, when, as mayor of San Francisco, he defied federal law and issued marriage licenses for same-sex couples.
“This is a moment where we cannot look to the federal government for leadership,” Mr. Mamdani said. “This is a moment when cities and states will have to demonstrate what it actually looks like to stand up for our own values, our own people.”
So Mamdani catered to the anti-Israel crowd by promising to arrest Netanyahu. Big freaking deal! Hey, he’s certainly not the first politician who won an election by promising something unrealistic and undeliverable. You kiddin’ me? Broken campaign promises are a dime a dozen.
They’re practically an American tradition!
And that’s why conventional wisdom assumes Mayor Mamdani is going through the motions right now. When reality forces a politician to abandon a memorable-yet-undeliverable campaign promise, he finds an excuse/legal pretext and moves on. That’s how you’re supposed to play the game!
If that’s your assumption, Mayor Mamdani’s recent New York Times interview makes all the sense in the world:
Mayor Zohran Mamdani said his administration was still discussing whether to arrest the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, if he comes to New York City as expected for the U.N. General Assembly in September.
“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mr. Mamdani told Lulu Garcia-Navarro this week on “The Interview,” a New York Times show, referring to the home of the United Nations’ International Court of Justice.
“He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court,” Mr. Mamdani added. “And what you will find is that is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years.”
The mayor said it was unclear to him whether he has the legal authority to order the Police Department, which he oversees, to detain a foreign leader like Mr. Netanyahu. He said he was in “an active conversation” with the city’s Law Department about the matter.
On the surface, it’s the perfect fig leaf: Mamdani didn’t break his campaign promise because he wanted to. But golly gee — curses and drat — his city’s Law Department (which, y’know, is probably controlled by AIPAC and Zionist Jews) wouldn’t give him permission. And since Mamdani — unlike that “war criminal” Bibi Netanyahu — is such a stickler for following the rule of law, his hands are tied.
“I tried my best, guys!”
Not only would this get him off the hook for his (absurdly) undeliverable campaign pledge, but it also establishes a political pretext for Mamdani’s next act: After he “saves” New York City from capitalism with the warmth of collectivism, voters must send him to Washington, D.C. so he can rewrite federal law — and hold Netanyahu accountable for his horrible “genocide.”
This will be the dominant theory between now and September. Conventional wisdom will recite it, chapter and verse. Netanyahu won’t be arrested. The mayor is paying lip service to a broken promise.
Trouble is, this theory assumes that Zohran Mamdani is a normal, typical politician. But what if he’s not?
What if he’s something very different?
What if Zohran Mamdani is a socialist revolutionary?
Mamdani didn’t become the darling of the radical left — and the avatar of anti-Zionism — by working within the political system. Instead, he launched an upstart campaign, hijacked the party, killed the Cuomo dynasty, and became a kingmaker for DSA candidates. It’s as much about his movement as it is about him.
And his movement glorifies revolutionaries.
You show me your heroes, and I’ll show you your dreams, goals, plans, and aspirations. That’s how our brains work. Our heroes are our role models, and our role models reflect our objectives, moral code, and hierarchy of values.
The heroes and role models of the DSA movement aren’t the legislators who follow the rules and work within the system. They’re the people who sought to overthrow the system entirely: Vladimir Lenin, Fidel Castro, Leon Trotsky, Che Guevara, Ho Chi Minh, and Chairman Mao.
Plus, today, the Palestinians and/or Hamas.
“Workers of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains!”
What better way to advance the revolution than flouting the corrupt, unfair law of Donald Trump’s capitalist patriarchy and arresting an evil, genocidal, racist colonizer like Prime Minister Netanyahu?
Left-wing Americans would cheer wildly. Mamdani’s “bravery” and “moral clarity” would be praised from Tehran to Madrid, from Belfast to Boston, from Qatar to Quebec.
Why, he’d probably be nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize!
Other than Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.), the vast majority of Democrats wouldn’t object. The Ro Khannas of the world — ambitious Democrats who’ve already hitched their political futures to Israel-bashing — would continue to court the party’s base by defending Mamdani’s decision.
If anything, they’d match Mamdani’s rhetoric and escalate their attacks.
The trendlines are clear: The Democratic Party has shown zero willingness to stand up to the DSA extremists, so why would anyone assume that arresting Netanyahu would be the straw that breaks the camel’s back? C’mon, that’s just silly.
The opposite is more likely: Democrats would respond to Netanyahu’s arrest with thunderous applause — and Mamdani would grow even more popular with grassroots activists.
Mamdani’s party is the anti-Israel party. A supermajority of Democrats — 77% — believe Israel is guilty of genocide in Gaza. Only 9% of Democrats have a favorable opinion of Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Giving your audience what they want is smart politics. (And for better or worse, Mamdani appears to be a smart politician.)
Come September, we’ll find out if he’s a revolutionary, too.
One Last Thing: 2026 will reach a crescendo with the midterm elections. Nothing less than the fate of the America First movement teeters in the balance.
Never before have the political battle lines been so clearly defined. Win or lose, 2026 will transform our country.
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