The First Frozen Days

There was never going to be a honeymoon in New York, but Mayor Zohran Mamdani could have made critics work a little harder to find things to kvetch about. As it is, New York doing its best three-week imitation of Nuuk under more than a foot of ice has put everyone in cantankerous spirits. The new mayor faced a storm of criticism from the word “Go”; whatever goodwill he had is likely the only thing that melted his first month. Here’s a scoreboard of slippery slopes and snowballs saddling the 111th mayor of New York.

Early Ax

New city staff hadn’t slept off their New Year’s hangovers, and Mamdani was already chopping down all the executive orders Eric Adams issued in his last year. The new boss framed it as an innocent “Who, me?” general reset, but no one was fooled. Most saw an attempt to hide — b’havla’ah — the revocation of important actions protecting Jews and relations with Israel, such as the citywide adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism and a BDS-busting ban on businesses boycotting the Jewish state.

For a mayor battling allegations of antisemitism and allegedly out to prove his allegiance to unzere, it was a poorly planned first step. To his credit, there hasn’t been a whole lot of boycotting or divestment on his part yet, earning him a solid 3/10.

Hate Has No Home, and Raising Its Ugly Head

After an early stumble, the mayor did a better job condemning antisemitic attacks.

Unfortunately, he’s had plenty of opportunities. Antisemitic incidents spiked a staggering 182% in January, year over year. After the most visible recent attacks, the mayor deftly and immediately wielded his armchair and keyboard to unequivocally condemn them and make appropriate “no home/ugly head” vows. He even sped to Eastern Parkway to hold a press conference at the Exact Spot at which a man bull-rushed 770 with his car, calling it a hate crime — although that conclusion is, as yet, inconclusive.