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Mamdani charms Trump (again)
After a White House visit, a Columbia student is released from ICE custody.
Cameron Peters is a staff editor at Vox.
Welcome to The Logoff: So far, so good for New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s delicate relationship with President Donald Trump.
What’s happening? Mamdani visited the White House on Thursday, at least in part to discuss plans to build new housing in New York City. In the process, he successfully secured the release of Ellie Aghayeva, a Columbia University student detained by federal immigration enforcement; Mamdani wrote in a post Thursday afternoon that Trump had said Aghayeva would be released immediately.
Why does this matter? Aghayeva’s quick release is striking, given the Trump administration’s reluctance to give ground on many of its other extreme immigration actions, including the March 2025 arrest of a former Columbia student, lawful US resident Mahmoud Khalil, for his involvement in pro-Palestine protests at Columbia. (Mamdani reportedly also raised Khalil’s name, as well as others, with Trump’s chief of staff.)
Aghayeva was arrested early on Thursday morning after ICE agents reportedly entered her university-owned building under false pretenses and without a judicial warrant — a likely unconstitutional practice that reporting suggests has become widespread ICE policy under Trump.
What’s the context? Mamdani, who took office in January, has been remarkably successful at navigating a complicated relationship with the White House. The two had a strikingly warm meeting in November following Mamdani’s runaway election win, where Trump beamed and told reporters, “Hopefully, you’ll have a really great mayor.”
In a photo shared by Mamdani on Thursday, Trump was again all smiles as he held up a mocked-up front page for the New York Daily News, reading “Trump to city: Let’s build.” (No doubt a particularly appealing prospect to Trump, a native New Yorker who got his start as a builder.)
The flattering printouts were reportedly brought to the meeting by Mamdani, evidently to good effect: Aghayeva was on her way home as of late afternoon on Thursday.
And with that, it’s time to log off…
Here’s some good news from the New York Times’s David Wallace-Wells: Despite plenty of bad climate news in the past year, the green energy transition is still winning out — even in the US. You can read his full, encouraging article here with a gift link. Have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!
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