Trump's Big Apple bite is bigger than the mayor's race
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Attorney General Pam Bondi, President Trump, granddaughter to Donald Trump Arabella Kushner, and former Senior Advisor to the President Jared Kushner stand prior to the Men's Singles Final match of the 2025 US Open on September 7 in New York City. Photo: Sarah Stier/Getty Images
President Trump arrived back in the concrete jungle where he built his fame on Sunday.
The big picture: Trump's presence has loomed large over New York City for months as he's sought to insert himself into city affairs, including a closely watched mayoral race.
- "When I left, New York was the place you wanted to be, and now people just don't speak well of it. But we're going to bring it back, and we're going to bring it back strong," Trump said of the city at a 2024 Madison Square Garden campaign rally.
- Since then, his administration has made big moves in New York City by dropping corruption charges against the city's mayor, fighting the city's congestion pricing program, wading into political races and recently threatening a federal crackdown on city crime.
Driving the news: The president arrived in the city Sunday for the U.S. Open men's final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner at Arthur Ashe Stadium, where the Trump Organization once held a suite.
- The last time he attended the tournament, then as a candidate in 2015, he was met with a chorus of boos. Per sports reporter Ben Rothenberg, he received a mix of boos and claps on Sunday.
- Prior to his appearance, the U.S. Tennis Association asked ESPN and other broadcasters not to air any "disruptions or reactions" related to the president's appearance at the match. The association told multiple outlets it is policy to "regularly ask our broadcasters to refrain from showcasing off-court disruptions."
Between the lines: Trump's wheels touched down just days after multiple outlets reported his administration was considering a stunning intervention in the upcoming election for mayor of New York City.
- That news came months after Trump's Justice Department made the controversial move to drop criminal charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, sparking an exodus of prosecutors.
- Multiple reports last week said Adams was being considered for a role in the Trump administration, but the mayor denied that he is dropping out of the race.
- Still, Trump wants a one-on-one race between the city's Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, at whom he's hurled a cascade of insults and threats, and another candidate.
- The goal of giving Adams a post, The New York Times reported, would be to give former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo a better chance to take on Mamdani. Trump has not said which candidate he wants to see run against Mamdani.
Multiple outlets also reported this week that Trump is exploring means by which to take federal control of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum in Lower Manhattan.
- New York Gov. Kathy Hochul condemned the administration's reported plans, saying in a statement that the memorial "belongs to New Yorkers — the families, survivors, and first responders who have carried this legacy for more than two decades and ensured we never forget."
- The White House did not immediately respond to Axios' request to confirm such reports.
- While on the campaign trail in 2024, Trump pledged to make Ground Zero a national monument. The New York Times reports that some of the families of victims had criticized the memorial's ticket prices and executives' salaries.
Zoom out: After his federal takeover in the nation's capital, Trump floated several other cities he'd want to target, with New York City among them.
- "I think Chicago will be our next, and then we'll help with New York," he said last month.
The bottom line: Trump's New York state of mind is seemingly still central to his political identity, more than a decade after he descended the golden escalator.
Go deeper: Trump admin goes after N.Y. AG who won civil fraud trial against president
