Donald Trump’s ‘dream’ Democrat, the left embraces radical Islam and other commentary

From the left: Donald Trump’s ‘Dream’ Democrat

Zohran Mamdani is “running on old ideas that fail everywhere they are tried,” Ryan Clancy notes at The Hill. His victory will be “the anchor that sinks New York City” and also doom Democrats nationally. Any Dem “with influence and a spine” should point to San Francisco, which “after years of growing disorder and homelessness” dumped its far-left leadership. Mamdani’s rent freeze will “reduce housing supply and worsen affordability.” His plan for city-owned supermarkets is unknown in any “large U.S. or European cities,” though “Venezuela — where 40 percent of the people don’t have enough food to eat — has nearly 20,000 of them.” Mamdani bragged that he is Trump’s worst nightmare, but given his radical past he’s turned out to be Trump’s “dream candidate.”

Conservative: The Left Embraces Radical Islam

Zohran Mamdani’s “unhealthy obsession with Israel” proves “how radical Islam is gaining acceptance on the left,” contends The Wall Street Journal’s Sadanand Dhume. The “barrage of attacks” centered on Mamdani’s Muslim background “make little sense,” since nowhere has he “hinted at imposing Shariah, or Islamic law.” Still, he “has a long record of anti-Israel activity” and has “backed boycotting Israeli institutions.” He once “praised the Holy Land Five,” who were convicted “of providing material support for terrorism by funding Hamas.” “All this may not make Mr. Mamdani an Islamist, but it does make him appear sympathetic to Islamists.” Leftists “and Islamists have formed a de facto alliance based on their common contempt for Israel in particular and the West in general.”

Business desk: What Cali Can Learn from Va.

“When it comes to cultivating entrepreneurs, Virginia has a few lessons to teach California,” argues The Washington Times’ editorial board. Virginia has held a “top five spot on CNBC’s ‘Top State for Business’ list” since 2018. California “achieves a pathetic, middle-of-the-pack finish,” because its “Legislature’s Democratic supermajority created the worst possible environment for commerce.” “What sets Virginia apart is its willingness to undergo a regulatory diet.” Just last week, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced “that 11 million words from Virginia’s official guidance documents would be eliminated after a quarter of the state’s red tape was removed.” “California, by contrast, imposes the most regulatory angst of any state.” Gov. Gavin Newsom “needs to alter his approach”; he can start by following Youngkin’s lead.

From the right: Fed Boss’ Elitist Arrogance

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell “sort of stepped in it” in responding to criticism of his agency’s $2.5 billion building renovations, snarks Hot Air’s Beege Welborn. “In April, the NY Post broke the story” on the Feds’ “ ‘Palace of Versailles’ type home remodel.” Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought then told Powell President Trump wasn’t happy, and the fed boss “answered in a huffy note back that the Post report of excesses was erroneous.” But OMB basically confirmed the story, and now Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte “has called for a congressional investigation into Powell and the renovations” and OMB is “breathing down Powell’s neck, too.” Why would Powell antagonize “a president who wants him gone over something so disgustingly elite”?

Campus watch: Why I’m Leaving Columbia

“Leaving my dream job wasn’t an easy choice, but Columbia’s latest scandal makes it crystal clear why I had to go,” laments Shai Davidson at Tablet. In text messages, acting President Claire Shipman “downplayed the pro-Hamas movement on campus, belittled Jewish students’ concerns as irrational, and mocked a congressional probe on the issue as ‘Capitol Hill nonsense.’ ” Recently, “President Shipman bestowed the university’s highest honor on a professor who joined the hate-filled protests.” “Columbia’s failed leadership, morally bankrupt faculty” and indifference “have shattered my respect” for the school. Once “a beacon of truth and discovery,” Columbia has become “a battleground for extremists.” It’s “made my life so unbearable I chose to leave” — but they’ll never “silence me.”

— Compiled by The Post Editorial Board