Mamdani Derangement Syndrome

The mere mention of Donald Trump’s name causes a visceral reaction that afflicts many people on the left. You can see their faces getting red, their frowns, the blood pulsing at their temples. You realize that the chances of having a civil discussion on any policy or initiative attached to that dreadful name will be impossible. But there seems to be a similar syndrome that is beginning to afflict those on the right regarding New York City’s mayor elect, Zohran Mamdani.

Mr. Mamdani campaigned on implementing a wide variety of far left policies although many of them may be blocked or not fully implemented. For example, the tax hikes on billionaires and corporations in New York that Mr. Mamdani requires to pay for his largesse will need the cooperation of New York Governor Kathy Hochul. And while New York is a very liberal state, Ms. Hochul may be hesitant to wallop New Yorkers with huge tax increases while she runs for reelection.

While many of Mr. Trump’s policies since his reelection (such as tariffs and immigration enforcement) have had almost immediate impact on millions of people, the impact of Mr. Mamdani’s policies will take time before they cause much harm. Rent freezes may not cause the immediate collapse of the NYC real estate market. New construction will falter and maintenance of existing structures will be deferred, but it will take many months, maybe even years, before the dreadful impact of those changes are felt.

It will also take time to set up city-owned grocery stores because the grocery business is a  very complex distributional system with very low margins. While he may be able to hire a lot of stockers and check-out clerks at his proposed $30 an hour minimum wage, who will he get to run the system? And it will take time to feel the impact of the departure of the Korean grocers and Hispanic tiendas that he is forcing out of business (although the owner of the Gristede’s grocery chain says he will leave right away).

In the run up to the 2026 elections, Mr. Mamdani will have a slew of excuses to explain why so many of his policies are ineffective. Most of the blame, of course, will fall on President Trump. And Mr. Mamdani will be at least partially correct. President Trump will try everything in his power to block any and all of Mayor Mamdani’s proposed reforms. In Mamdani’s social democratic universe, much the blame will also fall on non-Marxist moderate Democrats who will take the place of treasonous RINOs in MAGA universe. The only difference will be the lack of Trump inspired nicknames.

Many of the MAGA faithful will be infected by Mamdani Derangement Syndrome (MDS) just as many on the left suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome. The people stricken by TDS have lost the argument before they open their mouths. Their derangement is emotional, not logical. They are incapable of convincing anyone not sharing the same emotional reaction about why President Trump’s policies and not just wrong, but evil.

A sweeping epidemic of emotion based Mamdani Derangement Syndrome among those on the right will convince no one of the dire consequences of the recent election in New York. The collapse of those socialist programs is inevitable. But if that inevitability does not occur before the 2026 elections we may be in for an onslaught of social justice warriors proclaiming the righteousness of their cause. Meanwhile the people of New York will suffer.