Here’s to You, Mr. Cardamom

By Joseph Catena

The Democratic party in New York City is rapidly turning into the Big Apple’s version of Fordow, as the eve of the mayoral primary is upon us.

And Zohran Mamdani just might be the bunker buster that causes irreparable annihilation.

This primary perfectly embodies the turmoil the Democrats face nationwide. New York State Assemblyman Mamdani, the 33-year-old socialist radical who is promising everything from city-run grocery stores to free childcare to fare free buses – and of course a tax increase on successful citizens making a million dollars or more – along with making New York City a sanctuary city for members of the LQBTQ movement, may actually win the primary. An Emerson College Polling/Pix 11/The Hill survey revealed the left-wing firebrand to be within three percentage points – within the margin of error – of former governor, Andrew Cuomo, who is clearly the Establishment’s choice.

Mamdani, once a fledgling rapper known as Mr. Cardamom, has fired up the progressive wing of his party, along with socialists, anarchists, and likely communists. He is a prototype of the spoiled, privileged kid, who has basically done nothing with his career, never held a substantive private sector job, and has lived in subsidized housing most of his life. Yet, voters are to believe he espouses the necessary tools to run the most complex city in the world. While attending Bowdoin College in Maine, Mamdani co-founded the institution’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine. He holds harsh anti-Semitic views and has stated that funding Israel against Hammas was equal to funding a genocide. What’s even more amazing is that he openly criticizes Israel in a city with nearly 1 million Jewish residents.

Predictably, he has become the darling of higher-profile democratic socialist kooks, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Queens’ very own Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, both of whom gave him ringing endorsements.

Mamdani’s campaign puts Democrats in a very precarious set of circumstances. If he wins the primary, it would be a crushing blow to the Democrats. If the party resists and/or denounce him, they will in effect, go against the will of the plurality who put him there. If they support him, it would be spitting in the faces of every Jew in Gotham. Surely, they would stay home or vote for someone in a different party.

Conversely, if the Democrats accept him as their nominee, it would be the equivalent of Ilhan Omar east, the spread of a political cancer. Democrats would be stuck with the highest-profile mayor in the country with the wokest and most vile political views. Furthermore, if he actually wins and his governance over the city encompasses his zany wishes, New York will quickly resemble the old Soviet Union or Castro’s Cuba. Welcome back to food rations, extreme taxes, and “free” services. Add no police presence and a multitude of intergender bathrooms and locker rooms as far as the eye can see.

Being defeated by Mamdani would be a death knell for Cuomo, who has numerous shortfalls of his own. Aside from sexual allegations that led to his gubernatorial resignation, the former governor also has blood on his hands due to the many nursing home deaths thanks to his disastrous covid policies. He will forever be linked to his infamous quip, “People are going to die.” His state bail reforms that he signed in 2019 also chip away at his credibility on law and order.

Here’s where the mayoral race really gets good.

A Cuomo victory doesn’t mean Mamdani is done. The Working Families Party has endorsed him, and it wouldn’t be out of the realm of reality for him to go third party. For the record, Cuomo has already announced he will run as an independent if he loses the primary.  

Speaking of independents, let us not forget incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, who has spurned the Democrats and will run as an independent. Although he still considers himself a Democrat, he also claims the party needs an independent leader. However, Adams’ chances of winning might be a lot slimmer due to his indictments on five federal charges, including bribery and wire fraud.

Then, there’s Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee. One must wonder if Sliwa, a man who knows the streets better than anyone, and someone who is known by most New Yorkers also due to his decades of media presence, can actually sneak into first in a major four-way battle royal.

But Mamdani is the candidate who will have the greatest impact out of anyone. His fervent support by the fringe has given him millions of dollars to campaign with, and his true believers will turn out in full force for the primary. Democrats better hope those true believers don’t lure enough of the party faithful to pull his lever (or is it now push a button?) and have him represent them in November.

Conservatives and Republicans alike have a delicious plate of Macchiavellianism in front of them. Mamdani’s mere candidacy as a Democrat reveals what has become extremely evident about the party: it is the home of the far left with a luxury suite reserved for the lunatic fringe. The Squad, led by the aforementioned AOC, and its ilk get a bit closer to ruling the Democrats with each passing day and each election. Mamdani winning the general election would be a seminal moment for the movement. Card-carrying decades-long Democrats would also have to question their sanity by remaining affiliated with a party beholden to anti-Semites, socialists, and violent mobs who burn cities and American flags with gusto. The long-term future of the party could also go up in flames.

So, here’s to you, Mr. Cardamom. The GOP loves you more than you will know.