Zohran Mamdani is now officially the mayor of New York City. Can someone explain why he decided to take the oath of office in an old abandoned subway station?

Is this a historical location that New Yorkers like using? Because it looks like someone snuck into Lex Luthor’s underground lair from the 1978 Superman movie in order to stage a photo op.

Of course, there is something oddly appropriate about New York City seeing their new “democratic socialist” mayor think that a run-down and abandonded subway station is the PERFECT backdrop for his vision of government.

The majestic location for the ceremony was chosen because it symbolized the legacy of an ambitious New York City, Mamdani said in a nod to his sweeping socialist agenda.

“When Old City Hall Station first opened in 1904 — one of New York’s 28 original subway stations — it was a physical monument to a city that dared to be both beautiful and build great things that would transform working peoples’ lives,” Mamdani said about the old stop.

“That ambition need not be a memory confined only to our past, nor must it be isolated only to the tunnels beneath City Hall: it will be the purpose of the administration fortunate enough to serve New Yorkers from the building above.”

Mamdani’s subway station ceremony — a small event with few members of the media in attendance — will be followed later Thursday afternoon by a jubilant block party bash, where thousands will watch outside City Hall as Sen. Bernie Sanders again swears in the new mayor.

Oh yeah, nothing says “New York City” like BERNIE SANDERS doing a second swearing in ceremony. And unlike Mamdani’s wife, Mamdani’s mother is apparently going to very much enjoy her new role.

Mamdani’s mother, Mira Nair, told reporters at the old station that she never imagined her son would be mayor.

Asked if she’ll be involved, helping give advice to her son, Nair responded: “Of course, I’m going to be the mother of New York City.”

Once a nepo baby, always a nepo baby, apparently. But Mamdani has already begun making big decisions – some that are flip-flopping his previous positions. Remember that he ran on reducing the control of the mayor over the public schools? Well, just call him Mayor Emily Litella, because he’s already saying “never mind!”

In a major shift, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday said that he would no longer seek to end mayoral control of the New York City schools, a decision that came as he formally announced his choice to run the nation’s largest school system.

Mr. Mamdani’s reversal on mayoral control marked a significant change of heart. He argued often on the campaign trail that the system shuts out the voices of too many teachers, parents and students from crucial decisions, and maintained his opposition to the model during the final mayoral debates.

But on Wednesday, Mr. Mamdani said that while he disagreed with the way that the outgoing mayor, Eric Adams, wielded power over education, he understood the need for the mayor to be held accountable for public school outcomes.

The State Legislature typically renews mayoral control for two- or four-year terms, and Mr. Mamdani said that he would ask lawmakers this year for an extension of his authority over schools.

Mr. Mamdani’s shift came as he appointed Kamar Samuels as his chancellor, one of his final major decisions before his inauguration early Thursday. He formally announced the selection at an environmental center in Central Park and also named Emmy Liss, a well-regarded former top education official who helped launch universal prekindergarten under Mayor Bill de Blasio, as the executive director of the city’s child care office.

You mean Mamdani lied about his position in order to get elected, and then changed his mind just before being sworn into office?? I’m shocked, SHOCKED.

Mayor control has been the story of education in New York since Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg won power over the system in 2002 and shut down many low-performing schools, replacing them with smaller, new schools.

Since the Bloomberg era, though, some families and teachers have pushed to gain more input on the direction of their schools, and many remain skeptical that the model is the best option.

Leonie Haimson, a well-known education advocate in New York and the executive director of Class Size Matters, a nonprofit that pushes for lower class sizes, described Mr. Mamdani’s shift as “very troubling.”

“Every mayor has promised more parent input,” Ms. Haimson said on social media. “And then when push comes to shove, they just do what they want.”

Flip-flopping on a major campaign promise is bad enough. Picking a completely untested fire chief is another thing. Choosing a chief counsel, who comes with a resume of defending al Qaeda, for New York City? That’s a bold move, Cotton.

The democratic socialist announced he would appoint crusading activist attorney Steven Banks — just the latest de Blasio administration retread– to head the city’s Law Department as corporation counsel and ex-Biden policy adviser Ramzi Kassem to serve as City Hall’s chief counsel.

… Kassem, who was a senior policy advisor under former President Joe Biden, will serve as chief counsel, which is widely seen as the most important advisory role in the mayor’s office.

The City University of New York law professor’s appointment raised eyebrows because of some of his past clients.

Kassem was part of the legal team that defended Columbia University anti-Israel leader Mahmoud Khalil, a major player in the rowdy protest encampments last school year.

The team advocated for the rabblerouser when the Trump administration tried to deport him this year.

He also defended terrorist Ahmed al-Darbi, an al Qaeda member convicted in 2017 of the bombing of a French oil tanker off the coast of Yemen in 2002.

Kassem’s position doesn’t require approval from the City Council.

State Assemblyman Kalman Yeger, a Brooklyn Democrat, slammed Kassem’s appointment, claiming Mamdani is choosing to “telegraph to America Haters that they have a place in his City Hall.”

“In a city as great as New York, there are any number of brilliant legal minds willing and able to serve who have not previously defended terrorists as an Al Qaeda lawyer,” the former councilman said.

“The mayor-elect probably realized he couldn’t nominate him as Corporation Counsel, as that is subject to City Council confirmation, and even the City Council doesn’t hate America that much,” he added.

Not great! https://t.co/wmxC5eyrQc

— Dan McLaughlin (@baseballcrank) December 31, 2025

Are you not entertained yet, New York City? Everyone feeling sanguine about your electoral choices right now?

Zohran Mamdani, up to this point, has been able to turn on the smarm charm and work his way out of politically touchy situations by retreating on previous positions, even though everyone knows that he really is a good old-fashioned communist at heart. However, up until this point, the buck has never stopped with him. Now, he’s the guy in charge. Maybe he should have been careful about what he wished for, because now he has it, in spades. And everything that happens after today is all on him. Enjoy the ride, New Yorkers.

Featured image: original Victory Girls art by Darleen Click