Eric Adams, Zionism, and Pre-Emptive Strikes Against Mamdani

Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist

19 Nov 2025

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Mayor Eric Adams of New York prayed at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on his second trip to Israel as mayor. Credit...NYC Mayor's Office

Eric Adams, New York City’s blustering and corrupt outgoing mayor, is working with his allies to undermine mayor elect Zohran Mamdani in a blatant power grab and a violation of all norms of democracy.

“If I were a Jewish New Yorker, I’d be concerned about my children. There is something to be worried about.” - Outgoing New York City mayor Eric Adams, while in Israel, speaking of incoming mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration.

Zohran Mamdani will become the 111th mayor of New York City on January 1, 2026. Eric Adams, the man who will be mayor for the next six weeks, is using what remains of his term to undermine his successor at every turn. He recently ended a three-day trip to Israel, making good on his long-term partnerships with zionists and knifing Mamdani on his way out the door.

Adams actually began his sabotage before venturing off to his warm welcome in Israel. One of Mamdani’s campaign promises is to freeze rents in apartments occupied under rent stabilization laws. Adams is now considering appointing new additional members to the rent stabilization board to prevent Mamdani from making good on an important part of his platform. In typical Adams fashion, he even reached out to a reality television star for a position on the board and did so before Mamdani’s Election Day victory. Even seemingly less weighty issues, such as the fate of a community garden which Mamdani argues ought to be used for housing, have become a flashpoint between the two men.

After years of litigation going back to Adams’ predecessor, the Elizabeth Street Garden, located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, was slated to be removed in favor of the construction of 120 units of affordable housing for senior citizens. Adams had expressed support for the project but recently announced that the garden would become parkland and thus thwart Mamdani’s effort.

This moment is one that requires very disciplined discernment, as Mamdani’s leftist credentials must be examined and challenged when necessary. The man who ran on the issue of affordability could easily be moved to the right, as so often happens in U.S. politics. Monied interests are the power players in New York City and elsewhere, and they do not retreat when an electoral winner differs from their agenda. They can be expected to move Mamdani with soft power or hard power, making it all the more important for the new mayor’s supporters to make their demands clear. It would be unfortunate indeed if right-wing attacks hobbled Mamdani and also silenced those who should be pushing his agenda should he falter himself.

We see that Mamdani’s tepid anti-zionism and liberal reformism are already being severely tested before he even takes office. The powers that be in New York City, zionists among them, will not permit even the smallest change to take place without a fight, and it appears that Eric Adams is the designated attack dog against Mamdani and won’t disappear from public view after January 1.

The Israeli junket was vintage Adams, complete with the obligatory visit to the Western Wall. He had already gone through this strange political ritual on a previous trip, but he clearly felt the need to repeat himself. Adams posted on social media, “God, as I stand at the Western Wall, I join all those of Faith who stood here before me.”

Politicians of every stripe, including presidents from both parties, stood there before he did and also in obedience to zionist political power in the United States. What better way to continue the practice than to take swipes at the next person who will occupy New York City’s mayoralty by claiming that New York Jews will be endangered by his presence in office.

When Eric Adams was elected mayor by running as a conservative democrat in 2021, this columnist observed, “Adams speaks favorably of the business community, hence the campaign haul, and real estate developers and other wealthy New Yorkers made clear he was their choice. Fundraising prowess is always an indication that the people’s needs will not be met.”

Not only was the prediction true about Adams’ lack of concern for the people, but in the last four years, he and many of his top aides, including deputy mayors, the police commissioner, and public school chancellor, were subjects of investigation or were indicted on various charges of bribery and campaign finance violations. Adams escaped with an assist from Donald Trump, who forced the Justice Department to end the prosecution in his case.

It is important to note this level of corruption when discussing Adams’ future role as a Mamdani foil. He was rumored to have been offered various positions in the Trump administration if he withdrew from the mayor’s race to boost former governor Andrew Cuomo’s chances. Adams' credibility was at such a low point that he did not even compete in the Democratic Party primary. Instead, he ran on an independent ballot line but eventually withdrew and endorsed Cuomo when campaign finance violations prevented him from receiving any public matching funds.

Adams would seem to be the proverbial damaged goods, but he is being propped up by interested parties who can help him get another position once he is out of office or give him prominent media attention when they want to prevent Mamdani from fulfilling any part of his agenda. Trump says he will meet with Mamdani to, “...work something out for New York.” The voters spoke and chose Mamdani and his platform. There should be nothing to “work out” in a democracy. New Yorkers should get what they voted for, but there is much lacking in a supposedly democratic system. Trump may try to make good on his threats to withhold funds from New York City, and he may yet have a position for Adams, but in any case, the die has been cast for relentless opposition towards the newly elected mayor.

As he ended his Israel junket, Adams threw out the coup de grace against one of Mamdani’s most meaningful positions on Israel, promising to uphold the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and arrest him should he set foot in New York. “I believe the prime minister should visit the city. I think he should start with the inauguration ceremony of Mamdani in the presence of the City Council on January 1 to send a strong message to the largest Jewish community outside Israel.” He later added, “There is no police officer in the city of New York that is going to carry out that directive from the mayor, and he knows that.”

Eric Adams is positioning himself as the once and future mayor, making assertions about what police will and won’t do when he leaves office. He acts with impunity, just like his backers in Jerusalem and Washington do. Any celebration of his exit from office is most definitely premature.

Margaret Kimberley is the author of Prejudential: Black America and the Presidents. You can support her work on Patreon and also find it on Twitter, Bluesky, and Telegram platforms. She can be reached via email at margaret.kimberley@blackagendareport.com.