Mayor-elect Shares Unusual Encounter at White House

Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani recently recounted a surprising experience he had during a meeting with a friend of President Trump. He mentioned being shown a “coffee table book” about an upcoming UFC event at the White House.

During a recent appearance on “The Adam Friedland Show,” Mamdani, representing the Democratic Socialists, revealed that the overall atmosphere of his meeting with the Republican president was unexpectedly friendly. However, the most astonishing moment for him occurred while touring the White House.

Host Adam Friedland asked Mamdani, “What’s the weirdest thing he’s shown you?” to which he responded with an anecdote from their interaction.

Mamdani detailed his tour of the cabinet room, where he admired portraits of former presidents. He expressed his thoughts about Franklin D. Roosevelt, saying, “FDR was beautiful. We talked a little about FDR.”

Despite this, what stood out most for Mamdani was a particular book he noticed while waiting in the Oval Office.

“There are various books on the coffee table in front of me, and one of them is UFC in the White House,” he shared.

Friedland responded, “Oh, he’s bringing it there, isn’t he?”

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is set to hold a tournament on the White House grounds in June 2026, an event that aims to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary. Mamdani added that he had “no knowledge” of this unique event being planned.

According to UFC president Dana White, who has been a staunch supporter of Trump, the event could attract around 5,000 spectators.

Mamdani mentioned that while he was waiting to meet the president, he flipped through the book and looked at renderings of what an octagonal ring might look like on the South Lawn.

In a related note, UFC reportedly plans to spend $700,000 to re-turf the South Lawn following next summer’s event.