Mamdani Win Causes World's Whiniest Babies to Melt Down

What are the billionaires, right-wing media, and assorted toddlers really afraid of?

In the image America’s plutocrats have fashioned for themselves, they enjoy wealth and power because they are so extraordinary — so brilliant, so hard-working, so skilled and formidable that their success is almost inevitable. Yet these Masters of the Universe are utterly losing their minds.

“Corporate leaders held a flurry of private phone calls to plot how to fight back against Mamdani’s primary victory and discussed backing an outside group with the goal of raising around $20 million to oppose him,” the Journal reports. “I’m depressed and sad,” said one hedge fund chief. “If Mamdani becomes mayor, I will likely move my business and family out of New York.”

Here’s more from Politico: “‘Terror. Fear. Panic,’ Kathryn Wylde, head of the Partnership for New York City, a nonprofit that advocates for major corporations, said as she described the array of emotions her members are feeling.”

To hear them tell it, a new Great Migration is afoot, perhaps to Greenwich or the Hamptons. On Fox, Sean Hannity said Mamdani’s election will “basically chase anybody that makes any money out of New York — it will be a mass exodus the likes of which that city has never seen.” His colleague Laura Ingraham issued a call to action. “Unless rich New Yorkers band together, donate a lot of money, and create a groundswell for a viable alternative to Mamdani, another great American city is going to swirl down the drain,” she said. “And when it does, the rest of us should not be on the hook to bail it out. This is their decision, this is their choice.” How dare they elect somebody they like, but the rich people don’t.

But perhaps all is not lost. Right-wing billionaire Bill Ackman says he is “optimistic” because he is “looking into…Legal issues concerning the potential for another candidate to run now.” Somebody, anybody!

And of course, the whiniest baby of all weighed in:

And of course there was a torrent of outright bigotry issued from the right. “Are you comfortable with both London and New York having Muslim mayors?” asks Charlie Kirk. “That doesn't feel right.” “After 9/11 we said ‘Never Forget.’ I think we sadly have forgotten,” tweeted Congresswoman Nancy Mace.

All of which should have us asking: What exactly do these babies think Mamdani is going to do if he becomes mayor? They don’t like that he’s a democratic socialist; fair enough. Many of them just don’t like Muslims, which is sadly predictable. But what do they think the mayor is going to do that will be so catastrophic?

Granted, he has a lot of ambitious ideas in his platform. He wants to make buses and childcare free for all New Yorkers, for instance. Will that happen? Maybe, maybe not. It won’t be easy. But if he managed it, would it make the city some kind of intolerable hellhole for the rich?

He does want to impose an extra 2% tax on incomes over $1 million. Again, maybe he’ll succeed in establishing that tax, or maybe not. If you made $1 million last year, that would mean another $20,000 in taxes. If you made $100 million, it would mean $2 million more on your bill. Either one would be a lot to you and me, but basically nothing to them. Would it require some lifestyle changes? Trading in their BMW 740i for some dinky Prius? Not going out to eat as often? Of course not. They’d barely notice.

But eek, socialism! Meanwhile, Donald Trump is seizing control of U.S. Steel and for all intents and purposes extorting bribes from large media corporations, yet for some reason Wall Street is unconcerned.

What really bugs them

So what really has the plutocrats upset? Do they really think their economic fortunes are going to collapse if Mamdani becomes mayor? They may believe that, because as a group, especially when they start thinking about politics, the rich in general and the business rich in particular are just not that smart. They’re also a bunch of sensitive little snowflakes with the tenderest of feelings who will react with rage at any Democratic politician who criticizes them, even if that person’s policies work out great for business (as Joe Biden’s did).

But there’s something else at work. It’s about what New York is and who’s supposed to be in charge.

Take three minutes and watch this video Mamdani’s campaign made from the day last week that he walked the length of Manhattan:

This video shows something important about what Mamdani himself represents and whom he wants to represent. It’s a vision of the demographic panoply of New York: people of all races, ages, and apparent income levels, sitting in fancy restaurants and standing outside bodegas, all of them bursting with excitement about Mamdani.

Let me quote John Ganz on the repulsive multi-million-dollar campaign to convince Jewish New Yorkers that Mamdani is an antisemite because he has criticized the Israeli government:

And let me tell you a little secret: most New York Jews really like New York’s diversity. We like that it attracts the Mamdanis of the world. We like sharing it with people of lots of different backgrounds. That’s what makes us feel safe and happy here. Especially when they are such a mensch like him: a nice college boy, his parents are professors, he went to Bronx Science, and to a liberal arts school. I’m sorry, but you are gonna have a hard time convincing liberal educated upper-middle-class Jews not to like a college-educated, left-leaning immigrant—and one who tried to make a career in the arts?! Forget about it. The guy is practically Jewish! Not to mention that his Muslim and Indian identity is no doubt sincere, but it’s also largely cultural in a way a lot of Jews recognize.

For many Americans, the idea that there are other Americans who feel safe and happy in environments of racial and ethnic diversity just doesn’t compute. Aren’t you supposed to only be comfortable around your own tribe? Aren’t you supposed to feel aggrieved when you hear languages other than English being spoken? For many people who have spent a lot of time in urban environments, the answer is that diversity is precisely what makes a place feel reassuring and comfortable.

But you know who doesn’t like New York’s diversity? A good portion of the super-wealthy people who live there, and whose fortunes exist because it’s a dynamic place that attracts people from all over the world. Neither do the folks over at 1211 6th Avenue, the midtown headquarters of Fox News.

But guess what: None of them are leaving. As I’ve said before, Fox News may present an endless stream of anti-urban fear-mongering to its viewers while it lionizes the allegedly “real” Americans who live in rural America, but it isn’t not going to relocate its studios to rural North Dakota. Nor are the Wall Street titans going to leave the city, even if (heaven forfend) they have to pay a bit more in taxes. They will, however, keep whining.

Thank you for reading The Cross Section. This site has no paywall, so I depend on the generosity of readers to sustain the work I present here. If you find what you read valuable and would like it to continue, consider becoming a paid subscriber.