New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani says President Donald Trump is "coming after" New York City Attorney General Letitia James "because she did the right thing."
"She held him to account. She showed that no man and no wannabe king is above that same law," Mamdani said Thursday during a rally in Manhattan.
"We have to call it what it is. This is an authoritarian administration and we, the people, will not stand for it," he continued. "And so, when we reject Donald Trump's vision — one of cruelty, one of punishment, one of smallness, one of betrayal — we do it with our own vision of solidarity and when it comes to James, of having her back."
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, joined Mamdani at the rally, held in support of James ahead of her Friday court hearing in Virginia.
"If they can do this to the attorney general of a state like New York, heaven help the rest of us, 'cause they can come after anyone," Hochul said.
James, a longtime antagonist of Trump, pleaded not guilty Friday to federal charges in a case tied to mortgage records she signed in 2020. She faces one count each of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution.
Her case is set to start Jan. 20.
"This is not about me. This is about all of us," James said after leaving court, "and about a justice system which has been weaponized" and "used as a tool of revenge."
"So, there's no fear today," she said. "I believe that justice will rain down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream."
The indictment from the Department of Justice accuses James of using her home in Norfolk, Virginia, as a "rental investment property" while claiming it would be her "secondary residence," a move that allegedly saved her $19,000 over the life of the loan.
Mamdani has drawn the ire of Trump, who criticized him as a "communist" and a "100% communist lunatic."
Trump has also threatened that if Mamdani becomes mayor and tries to limit cooperation with federal agencies like U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, "we'll have to arrest him."
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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