By: Jerome Brookshire

As Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old self-declared Democratic socialist and Queens assemblyman, celebrates his surprise victory over former Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary, the national immigration spotlight has sharpened its gaze on the Big Apple. And leading that charge is President Trump’s former border czar, Tom Homan, who wasted no time turning his fire on Mamdani’s promise to “kick the fascist ICE out of New York City.”

In a fiery appearance on Fox Business’ “Kudlow,” Homan, a veteran of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Trump’s top immigration enforcer during his first term, delivered a blunt message to Mamdani: “Good luck with that.”

As reported by The New York Post on Thursday, Homan’s reaction came in direct response to Mamdani’s post-primary campaign pledge to “Trump-proof” New York City by severing all cooperation with federal immigration authorities, a centerpiece of his progressive platform. Mamdani has pledged to purge ICE from city facilities, end any data-sharing practices, and strengthen legal protections for undocumented immigrants living in New York.

But Homan, whose career in immigration enforcement spans decades, dismissed the newly minted nominee’s vows as both unconstitutional and politically naïve.

“Federal law trumps him every day, every hour of every minute,” Homan said forcefully, echoing sentiments he has shared since his appointment under Trump. “We’re going to be in New York City. Matter of fact, because it’s a sanctuary city, President Trump made it clear a week and a half ago — we’re going to double down and triple down on sanctuary cities.”

As The New York Post report noted, Mamdani’s campaign has embraced a combative stance against the federal immigration system, accusing ICE of “plucking New Yorkers from their families” under Trump-era raids. That populist tone has galvanized progressive voters — but also drawn fierce criticism from law-and-order advocates.

Homan, who helped design and execute some of the most aggressive immigration enforcement tactics during Trump’s first term, made clear that ICE’s focus on New York will only intensify in a second Trump administration. He emphasized that sanctuary cities like New York have become magnets for repeat offenders and pose elevated risks to public safety.

“We’re going to concentrate in sanctuary cities because we know they’re releasing public safety threats and national security threats back to the street,” Homan explained, highlighting the tension between federal and municipal jurisdictions. “So we know we’ve got a problem there.”

And if Mamdani believed defiance would result in reduced enforcement? Homan offered a stark correction.

“Not only are we going to send more agents to the neighborhood,” he warned, “we are going to increase worksite enforcement tenfold.”

Mamdani’s antagonism toward Homan is not new. As The New York Post reported earlier this year, the Queens legislator publicly confronted Homan in the halls of the New York State Capitol during an unannounced visit in March. Video footage shows Mamdani shouting at Homan and denouncing ICE for its arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University student and outspoken anti-Israel activist who had been detained for lying on his visa forms. Mamdani’s theatrical protest — which led to his removal by state troopers — became a rallying point in his primary campaign.

The Uganda-born assemblyman, whose campaign website promises to “deliver a city where everyone can afford a dignified life,” has repeatedly positioned himself as the antithesis to Trumpism, especially when it comes to immigration, according to the information provided in The New York Post report. His platform includes proposals to end all city-level cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, bolster legal defenses for undocumented immigrants, and institutionalize data protections to prevent future raids.

But critics — including many within the law enforcement community — warn that Mamdani’s posture represents not just a political gamble, but a potential threat to national security.

While Homan made no effort to conceal his disdain for Mamdani’s rhetoric, he offered words of praise for current New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who is expected to mount an independent run in the general election, as reported in The New York Post.

Homan called Adams “a law-and-order mayor” who “wants the NYPD to work with federal agents on significant public safety threats,” including efforts to locate the estimated 300,000 missing children trafficked across the United States.

“He’s in the right mindset,” Homan said of Adams. “It’s just that his hands are tied in many ways.”

Indeed, Adams’ record has been a complicated one — balancing progressive ideals with a stated commitment to public safety and policing. The New York Post reported that his quieter cooperation with ICE on high-priority cases has been a point of both praise and political friction.

Now, with Mamdani attempting to seize the mayoralty under a far-left banner, Homan and others in the Trump immigration orbit are framing the contest as a decisive moment for the future of sanctuary cities and federal enforcement.

The showdown between Homan and Mamdani is emblematic of a broader clash between local resistance and federal authority. As Homan rightly points out, immigration enforcement is the purview of the federal government — and any effort by a city to impede or obstruct that authority risks constitutional and legal backlash.

“Federal law is not optional,” Homan emphasized. “The Supreme Court has made clear that immigration enforcement cannot be selectively nullified by local politicians.”

But as The New York Post report noted, Mamdani’s campaign may be less about legal precedent and more about symbolism. In an increasingly polarized political landscape, his appeal to immigrant communities, anti-ICE activists, and disillusioned progressives has earned him a dedicated following.

Still, the real test will come not in press releases or protest videos, but in the raw exercise of federal power should Trump return to the White House.

As the campaign trail heats up, the battle over ICE is becoming a proxy war for broader ideological control in America’s largest city. For Mamdani, his insurgent campaign represents an effort to radically redefine New York’s relationship with federal power and immigrant identity. For Homan, it’s a call to arms against what they see as lawlessness cloaked in compassion.

The New York Post report observed that the upcoming months will mark a political clash unlike any other in recent municipal memory.

Whether Mamdani can transform his progressive promises into policy — or whether Homan and ICE will be waiting to meet him in kind — remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: the battle for New York’s soul has just begun, and both sides are calling it “game on.”