In my 46 years of living, there have not been two American politicians who have been as polarizing and as opposite at the same time while holding major positions. One, the President of the United States, and the other, the Mayor of New York City. One a hard-line, rage-bait authoritarian, the other a "progressive" or "Democratic Socialist" — which is NOT a communist, you dummy.
The leader of the free world and the leader of the biggest city in the world — for either one to succeed, they have to rely on the other side to see success. When there is this major of a gap between the two leaders, I just grab the popcorn and let their words talk.
In doing this, I have paid attention to how Mamdani has seemed to "figure out the code" on getting what he wants from the man who has called Mayor Mamdani "My Little Communist," "Lunatic," "A Total Nut Job," "Mamdani the Commie" — personal favorite, as it's funny — and more. The President has attacked the Mayor on his religion, hinted he is a closeted homosexual, and attempted to belittle his wife. Without hesitation, the Mayor rebuked him with monikers of his own, referring to the President as "Fascist," "Authoritarian," and "Despot." This alone made for a wonderful verbal training ground on television before the meeting of the two leaders in the White House, which went very well. Later, the two met at the Mayor's Mansion — Gracie Mansion — in NYC.
What makes these meetings go as well as they did doesn't exclusively end with Mamdani getting what he was asking for, but with how thankful Mamdani was for receiving what he asked for. The meetings have always ended with press conferences, where the media asked both men for their takeaways, and both men answered in polar opposite styles but with the same form of answer. This is the "Mamdani Effect."
What the Mamdani Effect Is
It is the use of emotional intelligence in which you see the other person crashing and burning and you stay stoic, straight-faced, and casual. An example of this would be when Kaitlan Collins asked the President a question and the President gave her an answer about how he banned her and she has no access to him — which is a story for another day. What is today's story is, Mamdani was asked about this and his answer was not demeaning toward the President nor the journalist, but was clear and concise in its message. He stated the media is always welcome in the Mayor's office, and that she was there as his guest, as is all media, and as is the President.
It isn't what you say, it is how you say it that gets you what you want. The President came across as a gaslighting ex who is saying, "You cannot break up with me. You love me." The Mayor came across as if it were actually his house: you're guests and you're welcome, but you will also follow his rules in his house. He said it with class and a level of dignity that left no side upset. That's something we all need to accept and learn from as individuals, but I digress.
What happens from acting with this level of emotional intelligence is that you show you are unbothered. What being unbothered by the aggression does is show dominance, similar to two boxers entering a ring: one fighter is hyped, jumping all over and just acting a fool, the other fighter is calm, cool, and collected. If you're betting on that fight, money on the calm person is bringing you the winner's purse more often than not. This is the same in any argument, debate, or political speech. Mamdani has that stone-cold chillin' factor locked down.
The Icing on the Cake
Now you have the cake made, and you need to ice it and make the designs. In the Mamdani Effect, this is the words that he says. Mamdani and Trump agreed upon a multi-billion-dollar development in Sunnyside, an aggressive plan which will develop many new houses and apartments with a goal of lowering the cost of living. While speaking, Mamdani expressed positive emotion in his vocal tone, making it sound as though the plan he laid out on the campaign trail was a Trump idea, while also taking credit in the proposition of the blueprints. His usage of words was with the precision of a Randy Johnson fastball and the effectiveness of a Tom Glavine slider. It feeds an ego while maintaining dominance, which should be taught in speech composition classes for decades to come.
The Takeaway
When dealing with narcissistic people such as President Trump, the key to getting your way is to fuel the ego and maintain your principles in a manner that shows you as unfazed. You will win.
This is the Mamdani Effect.
