New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Monday that his talks with President Donald Trump at the Gracie Mansion — their first face-to-face counter on the mayor’s home turf — centered on tackling the city’s affordability crisis.

“Each time the president and I speak, it is about the same topics: how to improve the lives of New Yorkers, and how to use the power of government to take on the cost of living crisis,” Mamdani said at a joint press conference following the meeting, adding that he would “work with anyone” willing to help ease the financial pressures facing New Yorkers.

Trump, who joined Mamdani on the Gracie Mansion lawn for the press conference, struck a cordial tone toward Mamdani after the meeting, telling reporters “I certainly hope he will be a great mayor.”

“I want what’s good for New York. I want what’s good for the country. I want him to be a great mayor, and he’s certainly got potential. Got great potential,” Trump said.

Mamdani, asked about Trump’s comments, left the assessment to his constituents.

“I’ll leave it to New Yorkers … to make their judgments,” he said.

Monday’s sit-down put two political opposites back at the same table after they forged an unexpectedly warm working relationship despite deep divisions over immigration and other major policy issues.

The meeting comes as Trump is in New York for the United Nations General Assembly, where he is scheduled to address world leaders Tuesday. While it was the first time Trump and Mamdani have met in New York, it marks their third in-person meeting since Mamdani was elected mayor last year. Mamdani’s chief of staff, Elle Bisgaard-Church, and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles also attended Monday’s talks.

Their relationship has been striking given their political differences. Trump repeatedly attacked Mamdani during the 2025 mayoral campaign, while Mamdani made opposition to the president and his policies a central part of his political identity. But a meeting at the White House in November took a notably warmer turn, with Trump saying afterward that Mamdani could “surprise some conservative people.”

The two previously met at the White House in February, when Mamdani pressed Trump for more than $21 billion in federal funding for an ambitious housing project at Sunnyside Yard in Queens. Mamdani said the issue came up again during Monday’s meeting. He said he and Trump agreed to deepen discussions between City Hall and the White House over the development, which could produce 12,000 homes and 30,000 jobs. Trump said the long-discussed project would likely require federal approvals and funding, but he signaled he was open to it.

“Maybe they have a shot at doing it,” Trump said, adding that any development should include a “pretty substantial” affordable housing component.

The two also discussed immigration, an area where they remain sharply divided. Mamdani said he raised Temporary Protected Status with Trump, calling the program critical to New Yorkers and industries including health care and hospitality.

“I made very clear this is a priority for me, a priority for our city, and I appreciated the consideration,” Mamdani said. “I shared my very strong opinions about how we can keep New Yorkers safe, how we can keep immigrant New Yorkers safe.”

Immigration remains a significant point of disagreement between the two. Mamdani said last week that he and Trump had maintained an “ongoing conversation” on immigration despite “deep disagreements” over ICE raids, temporary protected status and the administration’s new public-charge rule, which the city is challenging in court.

The two also publicly split over the Trump administration’s decision to bar some news organizations from White House grounds. Mamdani said he told Trump that “all of the members of the press” would be welcome on the Gracie Mansion lawn, regardless of their coverage or criticism.

Trump defended the restrictions, arguing that news organizations have an obligation to be “fair” while singling out CNN and MS NOW for criticism.

“If they’re fake news, I really think I have an obligation not to allow them into another very special house,” Trump said, referring to the White House.

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