Discover video-sourced quotes by politicians

Zohran Mamdani: “Paying a middleman often more than $20,000 for the right to…”

Featuring: Zohran Mamdani, Democratic | Mayor of New York City

Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani

Published October 27, 2025 | Video Starts at 19:08

Right now in New York City, the city is refusing to issue additional permits to ensure that New Yorkers can actually vent. What that leaves those New Yorkers doing is Paying a middleman often more than $20,000 for the right to use their license. So when a New Yorker asks me, why is chicken and rice 10 bucks, I tell them, because city government is actually making it. (19:08–19:13)

CLAIM

Asserts that street vendors pay over $20,000 to middlemen for license use.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

Discover more from

Zohran Mamdani

“I have won close to $500 million in debt relief for working class taxi drivers.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 03:33-03:40
“There are more than a million New Yorkers who are Muslim in this city.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 05:18-05:22
“In 2020, the police response time was a little less than 11 minutes. Today, it's closer to 16 minutes.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 10:23-10:30
“We're asking officers to deal with 200,000 mental health calls a year.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 10:30-10:35
“Close to two and a half million [New Yorkers] live in rent stabilized apartments.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 14:44-14:48
“The mayor has used that power to increase the rent by more than 12%.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 14:50-14:55
“Childcare is the next highest cost for New Yorkers... $22,500 a year.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 15:03-15:10
“We had just won the Democratic primary in the city and that in fact, it was a margin that at that point was only going to grow to about 13…”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 01:30-01:39
“Today, we have more than 90,000 [volunteers].”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 02:04-02:06
“More than a million [New Yorkers] ride the buses every day.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 05:18-17:09
“We're not just going to increase funding for hate crime prevention programming by 800%.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 06:58-07:03
“We're also going to actually implement a curriculum called Hidden Voices that would celebrate the breadth and the beauty of Jewish life in…”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 07:07-07:15
“The affordability crisis from within [is the second crisis facing New York City].”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 14:26-14:32
“It's more money to find childcare than it is to send that same kid 18 years later to CUNY.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 15:10-15:15
“We're talking about raising personal income taxes on the top 1% of New Yorkers.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 15:47-15:52
“These are New Yorkers who make a million dollars a year or more and raising it by 2%.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 15:51-15:56
“For businesses, we're talking about the top rate of the state's top corporate tax.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 15:56-16:01
“We'd match the tax of New Jersey.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 16:03-16:06
“The first [crisis] is an authoritarian administration in Washington that is going to stop at nothing to try and spread chaos across these…”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 18:36-22:21
“Right now in New York City, the city is refusing to issue additional permits to ensure that New Yorkers can actually vent.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 18:59-19:07
“We were polling at 1% as recent as February.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 21:34-21:38
“What New Yorkers deserve is a mayor who can understand the twin crises that are facing the city.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 22:09-22:14
“That includes the 8.5 million people who live in every one of the five beautiful bars of this city.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 22:34-22:39
“After our rally with more than 10,000 New Yorkers there.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 23:26-23:30
“To start that work right here in New York City so that we can do it for New Yorkers.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 23:38-23:42
“Ensuring that they can move around the city without fear, that they'll have to deal with the National Guard.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 23:58-24:04
“Move around the city without fear they'll be priced out of their home.”
Up Close with Bill Ritter: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani | Uploaded October 27, 2025 | 24:03-24:06