Democratic mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani heaped praise on Trump ally Rudy Giuliani during a Sunday TV appearance, giving the ex-mayor credit for making the Staten Island Ferry free again.
Mamdani — the frontrunner to become next mayor of the city — had nice things to say about the Big Apple’s former leaders during an appearance on MSNBC’s “The Weekend.”
“Giuliani, for all my disagreements with him, also was a person who brought free public transit on the Staten Island Ferry,” Mamdani told co-hosts Jonathan Capehart, Eugene Daniels and Jackie Alemany. “That’s also a history that our push for free bus transit is a part of.”
Mamdani only told half the story.
The SI Ferry service was free, but then-Mayor David Dinkins imposed a 50 cent fare in 1990 to pare spending during a fiscal crisis.
Giuliani scrapped the fare for the ferries between Staten Island and lower Manhattan when he ran for re-election in 1997.
Giuliani oversaw the city Department of Transportation which operates the ferry service and had say over the fare but Mamdani would need approval from the MTA and likely the state legislature and governor to eliminate the bus fare.
He also lauded Dinkins for promoting the city s a “gorgeous mosaic” and noted the late mayor was also a democratic socialist.
Mamdani touted former three-term Mayor Mike Bloomberg for his management style and for expanding green space, while applauding fellow Democrat former Mayor Bill de Blasio for instituting a universal pre-k program, which helped save working parents thousands of dollars in child care costs.
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