Mamdani and AOC face backlash over smiling exchange at 9/11 memorial
Republicans criticize the pair’s conduct during the reading of victims’ names, while Giuliani’s security chief says cameras captured a greeting
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez face criticism after cameras captured a smiling exchange between them as victims’ names were read aloud at the ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
The brief footage from Ground Zero shows Ocasio-Cortez appearing to laugh while speaking to Mamdani, who smiles back. The broadcast cuts to the pair after showing a visibly distressed mourner with his head bowed. Their conversation is not audible, and the footage does not establish what prompted the exchange.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was among Republicans who condemned the moment on social media.
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“Mamdani and AOC seem to be having the time of their lives while everyone else is paying respects to the deceased,” he wrote on X.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz also criticized the pair: “How the hell do you laugh while the names of those murdered on 9/11 are being read aloud? Why would you do so?”
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However, Michael Ragusa, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s head of security, disputed the interpretation circulating online, saying he had been standing beside them.
“The camera just caught her greeting him hello,” Ragusa wrote on X. “Multiple other politicians were laughing and joking behind me. Republicans and Democrats.”
Ragusa described himself as a lifelong Republican who had frequently criticized both politicians. The New York Post also quoted a source who said Mamdani remained respectful, stayed until the ceremony ended and spoke with victims’ families.
The controversy follows an earlier campaign by some victims’ relatives to keep Mamdani away from the commemoration. Petitioners cited his political associations and positions, including his reluctance to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada” and his relationship with commentator Hasan Piker, who had said America deserved the attacks.
Mamdani attended and shook hands with Giuliani, who had publicly urged him to stay away. Vice President JD Vance and former presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Joe Biden also attended the Ground Zero ceremony. President Donald Trump marked the anniversary at the Pentagon.
Relatives read the names of the 2,977 people killed in the September 11 attacks and the six victims of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. For the first time, the ceremony included a seventh moment of silence honoring those who subsequently died from 9/11-related illnesses.