New York’s political theater took a darker, stranger turn this week when Attorney General Letitia James — now federally indicted on mortgage fraud charges — showed up to headline a campaign event for Zohran Mamdani. The indictment handed down on October 9 accuses James of lying on a mortgage application, and the whole affair has become a magnet for partisan theater and raw emotion. Voters deserve facts and calm, not rallies that look more like political pageants, and this one has the stench of political theater written all over it.
At the Washington Heights rally James strode onstage defiantly and supporters broke into loud chants of “We love Tish,” turning what should be a sober legal moment into a partisan pep rally. The Associated Press captured the scenes of thunderous applause and pointed rhetoric about weaponized justice, as the indicted AG cast herself as a martyr to political revenge. That performance was less about respect for the law than about stoking the base, and conservatives should be blunt: law is supposed to be above political rallies.
Into the breach stepped media provocateur Dave Rubin, who shared a direct-message clip of the event that highlighted just how theatrical and disturbing Mamdani’s behavior looked to outside observers. Rubin’s segment, circulated widely on conservative channels, frames the clip as evidence that Mamdani and his allies are more interested in spectacle than in responsible governance. Whether you agree with Rubin or not, the clip asks a simple question: do New Yorkers want a mayoral ticket built on chants and headlines instead of sober leadership?
This isn’t an isolated moment for Mamdani. His campaign has been dogged by earlier controversies over chants and rhetoric tied to the phrase “globalize the intifada” and his embrace of hard-left tactics that many New Yorkers rightly found alarming. Reporters and critics across the spectrum have documented how those past comments were defended as free-speech posturing even as they understandably alarmed Jewish communities and others concerned about endorsing violent-sounding language. That pattern matters: character and judgment in the heat of controversy predict how leaders behave when real crises hit.
Conservative Americans should not be silent when the left turns our city squares into stages for political theater and moral confusion. New Yorkers deserve a mayor who will prioritize safety, common-sense law enforcement, and fiscal responsibility, not one who cheers on spectacle and shelters indicted allies from accountability. This moment underscores a broader truth: when the left elevates style over substance and chants over checks and balances, the people who pay the price are ordinary taxpayers and small-business owners.
Letitia James must answer the indictment in court, and Mamdani must answer to voters for the company he keeps and the rhetoric he amplifies. Conservatives will keep insisting that the rule of law remain impartial and that elected officials be judged on competence and character, not tribal solidarity. Now is the time for hardworking New Yorkers to look past the chants and rhetoric, demand accountability, and vote for leaders who will put the city’s safety and prosperity above political theatrics.
