Independent New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo on Friday blasted his Democratic socialist opponent Zohran Mamdani’s "anti-business, anti-corporate" positions on "The Story." 

"[Mamdani’s] positions just will not work in New York," Cuomo told Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum. "If there’s one city where you can’t have a socialist mayor, it’s New York City."

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The former Democratic governor’s comments come as Mamdani leads the city’s mayoral race by nearly 20 points, at 44%, according to a Siena College Poll. Cuomo currently sits as the runner-up over Mamdani’s other opponents at 25%. 

Cuomo gave no indication of whether he would drop out of the race, while New York City Mayor Eric Adams criticized him for putting "dangerous laws on the books that hurt us, from cannabis to bail reform to 15,000 nursing home deaths." 

Instead, Cuomo predicted Mamdani’s appeal is going to "drop dramatically."

"I don’t think the public even knows who the assemblyman is, what he represents, what his positions are," Cuomo argued. "So I think the more they find out about him, the less they’re going to like him, and his appeal is going to drop dramatically." 

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Cuomo went on to outline what makes him "more competitive" with Republicans and Independents amid what he calls an "internal debate" in the Democratic Party.

"You can’t have an anti-business, anti-corporate mayor of New York City. We’re nothing without business and corporations, et cetera. It’s why people came here. It’s what made New York New York," Cuomo said. 

He continued, "I believe in law and order. Zohran is anti-police. I believe in capitalism; Zohran is a socialist, and I think that will make me more competitive with the Republicans and Independents."

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When MacCallum asked Cuomo if he is "hoping for President Donald Trump's support, either overtly or behind the scenes," Cuomo gave a resounding response.

"Yeah, no, absolutely not," Cuomo replied. "I take President Trump at his word that he won't get involved."

Cuomo disclosed that the last time he spoke or left a message to the president was July 2024, when Trump was almost assassinated in Butler, Pa, to "wish him well, and [send] regards to his family."

The two politicians notoriously butted heads over lockdown policies during the COVID-19 pandemic, with Cuomo accused of causing significant numbers of deaths in nursing homes by admitting COVID-positive patients without requiring testing. 

The Justice Department is currently investigating whether Cuomo misled Congress about his role in allegedly downplaying the number of fatalities and shifting blame to infected nursing home staff.

Attorney General Pam Bondi received a response this week from the governor of the first state to pass "sanctuary" legislation, after she had warned it was engaged in "policies and procedures that hinder federal immigration enforcement to the detriment of the interests of the United States."

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, confirmed receipt of Bondi’s original letter from the prior week, writing back that she "respectfully disagree[s]" with Bondi’s assertion.

"The State of Oregon, its public officials, and its law enforcement officers do not engage in conduct that thwarts federal immigration enforcement," Kotek said, noting the Beaver State passed America’s first sanctuary state law in 1987.

State Rep. Rocky Barilla, D-Eugene, introduced the bill which was then signed by Gov. Neil Goldschmidt amid concerns police were wrongly profiling Latinos about their immigration status.

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In her response to Bondi, Kotek said in the nearly 40 years since, Oregon officials and law enforcement have not violated federal immigration law while abiding by the state policy.

"A 2018 ballot measure to repeal portions of Oregon’s federal immigration enforcement law failed when 63% of Oregon voters opposed repealing the existing law," she said, adding that the 1987 law was revisited and "strengthened" by Salem lawmakers in 2021.

Kotek cited Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum’s statement after the 2021 actions:

"Oregon stands for the safety, dignity, and human rights of all Oregonians," the state prosecutor said at the time, as Kotek also echoed the contention the state is acting within the law due to legal precedent from contemporary Tenth Amendment called the Anticommandeering Rule.

That rule, borne out of cases like New York v. U.S. in 1992 – which focused on requests for states to dispose of nuclear waste -- prescribes that the federal government cannot force them to administer federal programs.

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Kotek said in her letter to Bondi that she is aware of warnings that the Trump administration may pursue civil actions against public officials on grounds they are obstructing federal immigration efforts or facilitating lawbreaking.

"The state does not take on the additional expense or burden to perform federal immigration enforcement as it is the job of the federal government," Kotek went on, citing the Anticommandeering Rule.

"The state of Oregon is in compliance with federal law and will continue to follow state law. Therefore, no 'immediate initiatives' are necessary to eliminate laws that impede immigration enforcement," she concluded, noting that her letter was delivered to the Justice Department via Federal Express.

The back and forth comes as an Oregon federal judge is poised to decide on a notable immigration case in the state, and rule on whether a twice-deported Guatemalan asylum-seeking farmworker can be released from federal custody despite prior deportations.

Identified only as L.J.P.L., the foreign national had been deported during the Obama administration, and litigants argued whether he could be released so long as he makes regular check-ins at a Eugene immigration office.

Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee whom Chief Justice John Roberts also named to the FISA Court, will decide whether ICE can move forward and immediately deport "L.J.P.L.," according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.