On Megyn Kelly’s show, “Ruthless” podcast co-host Comfortably Smug broke down the bizarre mindset that helped socialist Democrat Zohran Mamdani clinch the Democratic nomination for New York City mayor. According to Smug, it wasn’t the working-class boroughs pushing for Mamdani’s radical agenda—it was wealthy, white progressives driven by what he called a “deranged kind of white guilt.”
“If you look at the breakdown of where Mamdani won, upper middle class and wealthy people came out in droves to vote for him,” Smug told Kelly. “This deranged kind of white guilt, which has gripped the progressive movement, makes these people think capitalism is evil—even as they shop on Madison Avenue every day.”
The New York Times’ data backs this up. Mamdani beat Andrew Cuomo among “middle-income” voters by about 10 points and among “higher-income” voters by around 13 points, while Cuomo led with “lower-income” voters by a similar margin. Mamdani also outperformed Cuomo among white, Hispanic, and Asian voters, while Cuomo retained a lead among Black voters.
“But I think we need a communist. They’re gonna get what they deserve,” Smug quipped, noting that many former New Yorkers have fled the city only to watch it fall further into chaos.
Even Kelly’s co-host Josh Holmes joined in, saying voters were left choosing between “a guy who killed your grandmother, a socialist psychopath, or the current guy,” referencing Cuomo’s nursing home scandal and Mamdani’s radical proposals.
Since clinching the nomination, Mamdani’s platform has drawn sharp scrutiny. His proposed $30 minimum wage, massive tax hikes on corporations and high earners to fund $10 billion in new spending, and his plan to “Trump-proof” the city by cutting off cooperation with ICE and dumping $160 million into immigration legal aid have raised concerns across the city.
Mamdani’s anti-enforcement stance on illegal immigration directly contradicts President Trump’s policies, despite border security polling as a top issue among voters. Yet, Mamdani has framed Trump’s immigration efforts as “cruel” while promising to protect illegal immigrants from deportation by any means necessary if elected.
Smug argued that these kinds of policies are exactly what happens when wealthy progressives decide to virtue-signal their guilt rather than consider the real-world consequences for working-class New Yorkers. Meanwhile, crime, taxes, and the cost of living in the city continue to climb—issues that often drive residents out to red states like Florida or Texas.
For New Yorkers who have left, the rise of Mamdani might feel like a case of the city getting what it asked for. For those still there, it’s another chapter in the ongoing tension between radical progressive ideals and the practical concerns of everyday life.
Holmes summed up the problem simply: “This is what happens when a talent pool gets whittled down. It just keeps getting worse.”
Whether New Yorkers truly want a “socialist psychopath” in charge or whether this is just another protest vote against establishment Democrats remains to be seen. But with a general election looming, the battle for the city’s future is far from over—and the price for voters could be steep if Mamdani’s promises turn into policy.
