Lefty MSNBC news anchor Joe Scarborough revealed he’s brokering a meeting between mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt after the anti-Israel socialist was accused of refusing to work with the organization.
Scarborough made the announcement during a breakfast with reporters following a heated on-air exchange with Greenblatt on Wednesday, during which the ADL chief claimed Mamdani vowed not to work with the group to fight antisemitism, Mediaite reported.
The “Morning Joe” host pushed back during the interview, alleging Greenblatt was “blurring and bending” his criticisms of Mamdani, even though the incoming mayor has been a vocal critic of Israel, including refusing to say the nation has a right to exist as a Jewish state.
“There’s a lot of blurring and blending here, Jonathan,” Scarborough responded. “And, you know, I love you and you’re on all the time. And we’re always a fierce defender of yours. But you seem to be, like, blurring a lot of things together…”
Greenblatt conceded that Mamdani had made an effort to reach out to New York City’s Jewish community and had ample Jews working on his campaign — but said he has yet to see the Democratic socialist engage meaningfully with the “biggest institutions that represent Jewish New Yorkers.”
He said the synagogue Mamdani visited was “anti-Zionist,” which he likened to “going to the black breakout at CPAC and saying you understand African Americans.”
Scarborough then suggested on-air that he and Mamdani sit down for lunch and have a discussion, adding that Rev. Al Sharpton could help facilitate the meeting.
“I am willing to have conversations, hard conversations. Because my job is to keep the community safe,” Greenblatt shot back.
“But let me be clear: I’m not accusing him of those things,” he said, clarifying that he hasn’t accused Mamdani of explicitly refusing to condemn antisemitic attacks.
“What I want to make sure is, he doesn’t create an environment where Jewish people are unsafe. He doesn’t create an environment where global intifada becomes a mantra.”
Greenblatt had also announced on Wednesday that the ADL is launching a “Mamdani Monitor.”
He said the organization will dive into the backgrounds of Mamdani appointees and funding of organizations to see if they are hostile to Jewish people.
The ADL will also create a specific “New York City Antisemitism Tipline” amid a surge in reports of anti-Jewish hatred following the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza.
In his victory speech Thursday night, Mamdani told his supporters that he would “build a City Hall that stands steadfast alongside Jewish New Yorkers and does not waver in the fight against the scourge of antisemitism.”
Other Jewish groups alarmed by Mamdani’s victory have put out statements saying they will fight against any Jew-bashing in city government — among them the New York Solidarity Network and the UJA Federation.
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