{"id":15107,"date":"2026-01-04T15:40:38","date_gmt":"2026-01-04T15:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/?p=15107"},"modified":"2026-01-04T15:40:38","modified_gmt":"2026-01-04T15:40:38","slug":"mamdanis-inauguration-speech-rife-with-radical-rhetoric-troubli","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/?p=15107","title":{"rendered":"Mamdani\u2019s inauguration speech rife with radical rhetoric, troubli"},"content":{"rendered":"


By Casey Harper<\/span><\/span>, Op-ed contributor Saturday, January 03, 2026<\/span>New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks at his ceremonial inauguration at City Hall on Jan. 1, 2026. Mamdani was officially sworn in at midnight by New York Attorney General Letitia James at the Old City Hall subway station in a private ceremony. <\/span> | Spencer Platt\/Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n

A common crime of American politics occurs when a politician jazzes up the base with partisan rhetoric only to transform into a muddled centrist after Election Day. At least for now, New York City\u2019s smiling socialist mayor Zohran Mamdani is not guilty of that crime. But if he keeps on this track, he\u2019ll be guilty of much worse.<\/p>\n

Mamdani\u2019s January 1 inauguration ushers in what the wet-behind-the-ears mayor calls a \u201cnew era\u201d of Democratic Socialist leadership for the largest city in the nation \u2014 the same nation that defeated the Soviets, by the way.<\/p>\n

He was sworn in twice, first just after midnight at a private ceremony in a defunct subway station and then again at a block party in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will govern without shame and insecurity, making no apology for what we believe,\u201d Mamdani said during remarks at his second ceremony. \u201cI was elected as a Democratic Socialist, and I will govern as a Democratic Socialist. I will not abandon my principles for fear of being deemed radical.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aside from the fiery rhetoric, the symbolism of Mamdani\u2019s inaugural proceedings is striking.<\/p>\n

Mamdani forsook the traditional Bible and instead was sworn in on a Quran. Muslim mayor governing non-Muslim populations is a picture that has become increasingly common in Western Europe and has finally reached the shores of the U.S.<\/p>\n

The first swearing-in was conducted by avowed anti-Trump New York Attorney General Letitia James (D). The second time, Mamdani was sworn in by fellow Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who was born in Brooklyn but has represented a different state, Vermont, since 2007. Despite hailing from a different state, Mamdani couldn\u2019t resist having the leader of his Democratic-Socialist party put to rest any thought that Mamdani might revert to traditional Democratic politics upon taking office.<\/p>\n

Mamdani also sworn in at midnight. Perhaps the hour is late for the city.<\/p>\n

In his speech, Mamdani not only doubled down on the lofty promises of socialist utopia, but he also took shots at the foundation of America\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will replace the fragility of rugged individualism with the warmth of collectivism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Socialist leaders are known for lying, for making promises they cannot fulfill. But with his opening line of the inauguration speech, Mamdani likely told the truth:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy fellow New Yorkers,\u201d he said. \u201cToday begins a new era.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mamdani continued his speech, unafraid of embracing terms once considered landmines in American politics.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeginning today, we will govern expansively and audaciously,\u201d he said. \u201cWe may not always succeed, but never will we be accused of lacking the courage to try. To those who insist that the era of big government is over. Hear me when I say this. No longer will City Hall hesitate to use its power to improve New Yorkers\u2019 lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Practically, Mamdani promised a mental health department that takes certain 911 calls out of the hands of police, which is a top prescriptive takeaway from the \u201cDefund the Police\u201d movement. Mamdani also emphasized property tax reform and cracking down on crooked landlords.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will transform the culture of City Hall from one of no to one of how we will answer to all New Yorkers, not to any billionaire or oligarch who thinks they can buy our democracy,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

Mamdani, born in Africa, raised in New York, and recently naturalized, appealed not to the U.S. Constitution or Declaration of Independence in his speech, but to Nelson Mandela.<\/p>\n

\u201c… We will provide our own answer to that age-old question: who does New York belong to?\u201d Mamdani said. \u201cWell, my friends, we can look to Madiba and the South African Freedom Charter.\u201d<\/p>\n

With eloquence reminiscent of Barack Obama in 2008, Mamdani welcomed even former Trump voters into his coalition.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor too long, those fluent in the good grammar of civility have deployed decorum to mask agendas of cruelty,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Mamdani\u2019s appearance comes at a relative high point for socialism in the U.S. Now, socialism has a chance to flounder or fulfill the big government pledges where so many liberal college graduates in New York City have set their hope.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Normally rhetoric like Mamdani\u2019s comes from the kind of places where the cigars are famous but the food is rationed. For now, though, his supporters will have their fill of lofty promises.<\/p>\n

Lastly, and maybe the most striking of the symbolism for the trained eye \u2026 it\u2019s interesting that Mamdani chose to receive the mayor\u2019s authority in a ceremony underground. From below the city, he may drag his fellow residents into a socialist Hell.<\/p>\n

Or at least into the sewers.<\/p>\n

Originally published at The Washington Stand.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Casey Harper is managing editor for broadcast for The Washington Stand and host of the Outstanding podcast. He previously worked for The House of Representatives, The Daily Caller, The Hill, and Sinclair Broadcast Group. A graduate of Hillsdale College, Casey\u2019s work has also appeared on AOL News, The Federalist, Fox News, Glenn Beck Radio, MSN, the New York Post, Real Clear, the Washington Examiner, USA Today, and more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Casey Harper, Op-ed contributor Saturday, January 03, 2026New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks at his ceremonial inauguration at City Hall on Jan. 1, 2026. Mamdani was officially sworn in at midnight by New York Attorney General Letitia James at the Old City Hall subway station in a private ceremony. | Spencer Platt\/Getty Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15108,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[4513,1498,781,1136,4567,318,4568],"class_list":["post-15107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-christian-living","tag-inauguration","tag-mamdanis","tag-radical","tag-rhetoric","tag-rife","tag-speech","tag-troubli"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15107"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15107\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}