First Draft: Wild Attack on Mamdani Shows Netanyahu Knows He’s Cornered
The Israeli PM used Fox to mount lurid claims about the New York mayor, hurling unchallenged accusations without a fraction of fact. The DNC, meanwhile, remains in chaos as the midterms loom.
On this day in 1974, the U.S. House passed the first of three articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon, arising from the Watergate scandal. Less than two weeks later, he resigned. What innocent times…
Good morning, and as is now becoming traditional, Happy Monday. Martin here, pleased to be bringing you the politics news that counts, if oddly as yet unable to share my views on Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey,’ a film apparently precision-made to make my inner 9-year-old expire with glee. I was an unusual kid.
Congress may be heading for an obscenely long summer break, with the House out already, but that doesn’t mean things are going slow. In today’s ‘First Draft,’ we consider Benjamin Netanyahu’s wild attack on Zohran Mamdani, the New York mayor who wants the Israeli prime minister arrested for war crimes next time he sets foot in the city. Netanyahu made his claims about Mamdani endangering Jewish New Yorkers on Fox, of course, and so enjoyed a friendly reception. Less so here. Also, the Democratic National Committee is a shambles, and Donald Trump’s illegal Iran war is on another pause for who knows how long. Let’s read on.
Netanyahu vs Mamdani
Last Tuesday, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani called Benjamin Netanyahu a “war criminal” but also conceded that he did not have the authority to arrest him on an International Criminal Court war crimes warrant when the Israeli prime minister comes to the UN in September, as Mamdani had promised, but urged federal authorities to do so.
Then on Thursday, on New York’s Upper West Side, two men were stabbed. One was Asian, one Jewish.
Mamdani’s response was measured and inclusive. He said: “According to witness and victim statements, the perpetrator yelled ‘Allahu Akbar’ during both attacks. I am relieved that both victims are in stable condition.”
Both are expected to survive. Mamdani also heralded hate crime and attempted murder charges against the 51-year-old suspect, who the mayor said was “being held accountable” and would be “prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
“This kind of despicable violence is not who we are as a city,” Mamdani said. “Every New Yorker deserves to be safe, regardless of their religion or race. Our administration will always stand against bigotry and do everything in our power to root out antisemitism, racism, and hateful acts of all kinds.”
Inevitably, Netanyahu wasn’t listening. Two days on, he chose to head straight for the gutter.