While New York remains shocked by the deadly shooting that took place in the heart of the city last Monday, Zohran Mamdani has pledged to dissolve the New York Police Department's Strategic Response Group (SRG).
The Democratic candidate for mayor of the city, who surprisingly secured the party's nomination last month, had stated on social media in December 2024 that he would dissolve the SRG, the specialized division of the NYPD responsible for responding to critical situations such as civil unrest, major events, and emergencies.
"As mayor, I will dissolve the SRG, which has cost taxpayers millions in legal settlements and has mistreated countless New Yorkers exercising their First Amendment rights," wrote the socialist just two months after announcing his candidacy.
The Democratic Party downplays its candidate's statements
Criticism of Mamdani's delusional stance was quick to arrive. Representative Elise Stefanik resurfaced an old post from Mamdani from 2020, during the wave of protests over George Floyd, in which the communist wrote: "We don't need an investigation to know that the NYPD is racist, anti-queer, and a threat to public safety. What we need is to defund it."
Democratic strategist and police union advisor Ken Frydman was blunt: "Mamdani is a hypocrite and lacks a sense of irony. He can't mourn the shooting and at the same time call for the dissolution of the unit that replied to contain the killer."
The chairman of the state's Republican Party, Gerard Kassar, also warned of the risk involved in handing over control of the police to someone who has shown public contempt for the institution. "That won't work in a city like New York," he stated.
Meanwhile, New York State's Democratic governor, Kathy Hochul, had no choice but to offer a mild defense of Mamdani, downplaying his comments and diverting attention toward security in Stefanik's districts.
