Name: Mamdani appoints lawyer who defended al-Qaeda terrorist
Uploaded: 2026-01-06T18:18:55.623Z
Duration: 7 min 44 s
Description: New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino joins to discuss Mayor Zohran Mamdani being sworn in on a Quran, appointing a lawyer who defended an al-Qaeda terrorist, and more.

New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino joins to discuss Mayor Zohran Mamdani being sworn in on a Quran, appointing a lawyer who defended an al-Qaeda terrorist, and more.

New York

In an interview with The Post, New York City Councilwoman Vicky Palladino voiced strong concerns over Mayor Mamdani's administration, particularly highlighting his appointment of Ramzi Kassem as New York City's chief counsel. Kassem has previously defended an al-Qaeda suspect and represented anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil, which Palladino and the interviewer cited as causes for public outrage.

The discussion also touched on the mayor's democratic socialist platform, the increasing influence of the Progressive Caucus in the City Council, and the departure of residents from New York City. Palladino expressed worry about the city's future and criticized the Democratic Party's current direction, referencing the presence of prominent progressives at Mamdani's swearing-in ceremony.

Mamdani appoints lawyer who defended al-Qaeda terrorist

Joining me now, New York City Councilwoman Vicky Palladino. Vicky, thank you for joining The Post this evening and happy New Year's to you. What do you make of New York City's mayor taking an oath on the Quran? I don't care what he took the oath on. The fact that he took the oath is enough to make me sick. How's that? This is really terrifying. When he stands up there and he proclaims himself to be exactly who he is. Now let's not forget, I here in New York, being a councilwoman, we've been watching this guy move about the city for the last year. A year ago this month is when he went after Tom Holman as a state assemblyman. You didn't see that video? When Tom Holman went up to the state capitol. That lunatic that was going after him at that time, we didn't know who the heck he was. And somebody had dropped something in my ear and said, I think that guy's going to want to run for mayor. He's 35 years old. Okay, 33 at the time, whatever. He's going to run for mayor. We kind of shrugged it off. But then he came out of the gate with all his guns blazing. And we knew at that point that this guy was going to be serious. And what he did was, look, we had him lay all out. It was totally transparent. He was transparent. He told us exactly who he is and what he wants to do. For the little under 50-something percent that he got, these are a lot of out-of-state kids who come to New York now with a political agenda, hate their parents out there in the Midwest. There was a time when young people came to this city to make something of themselves. If you could come to New York and you could be a doctor or a lawyer, you aspire to go to the best universities. And we have all that to offer. Or maybe you want to be a bartender or a waitress and work on Broadway. But you always had aspirations. These people come here, and their only aspiration is to change what already exists, and that is to change it to what they want. And it's quite awful and it's quite terrifying. You know, when we talk about Zohreh Mondani. Go ahead. I was going to say, how actual concerned are you and a lot of your friends? I mean, if I was in New York, if I lived in New York City and I saw this guy get sworn in as a democratic socialist, some of the stuff that he's saying, if your landlord's not taking care of you, we're going to basically take over the building, it'll be government-run, we're going to have government-run grocery stores, anybody that understands socialism must be freaking out. But the fact that this guy got elected and is openly saying that's what he's going to do, what are all the centrist, moderate, even Democrats or Republicans, what are they thinking? Are they going to leave the state, or at least the city? I am so upset. The night of the election, I haven't been quite right since November 4th. I'll tell you the truth. I have been totally obsessed with what's going to happen to this city. I'm not just, you know, I'm a district council member, District 19, Northeast Queens, but I have exploded all over the city of New York because I am so forthcoming with my opinions and with my thoughts, and a lot of people, I say what a lot of people are thinking. And he is going to be a gigantic problem. This idea of government-run anything is wrong. We are all for free enterprise. We want individual home ownership, which they're trying to take away with COPA, which, to Mayor Adams' credit, he vetoed that yesterday, along with 18 other pieces of legislation that we pushed through on December 18th. The radical left is one-third of my council. My council is made up of 51 members. Fifty-one members, 18, and now the new incoming Democrats, they're going to go to the Progressive Caucus as well, it's the largest caucus in the city government, and that's one-third. So we're going from 18 to probably 21 to 22 out of 51. So we're giving this guy whatever he's able to do at a city level pretty much carte blanche. We're five Republicans. That's it. Five. And we are doing everything in our power. We're meeting again on Monday to try to figure out how we're going to navigate this. We cannot say this guy is de Blasio. Yeah, you're going to have to figure it out. You're going to have to figure it out. You're going to have to. I know during Mamdani's mayoral campaign there were also allegations that donors that he was receiving money from were tied to terror-linked groups. And just before his inauguration, he appointed Ramzi Kassem for New York City Chief Counsel, who once defended an al-Qaeda terrorist. He also represented anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil, who led anti-Semitic protests across Columbia University's campus. Now, many are rightfully, I think, feeling as you are, absolutely outraged. But what can be done about it at this point? Do New Yorkers just have to sit back, wait, see how bad it's going to get, and then at some point decide if it's time to leave the city or not? Well, let me say this. Right now we will have a lot of people leaving. We saw it during COVID. We lost 465,000. 465,000 people left the city of New York during the five years of COVID. It was horrendous. So that's a lot of your blue-collar, white-collar, some of them, good, solid voters. Because when you go to the polls now, you don't see what you saw a couple of years back. They don't want to put up with this nonsense. They're fleeing to go to Florida, to go to Texas, to go to South Carolina. I've got three relatives that just moved over the last year to South Carolina. My niece and her family and her grandchildren, they left. They're getting out of there, and rightfully so. They're getting out. I want to squeeze this in. Go ahead. Almost out of time, I want to squeeze this in. During Mamdani's public swearing-in ceremony this afternoon, Bernie Sanders and AOC were right by his side. Is this new trio, in your opinion, the new face of the Democrat Party? And if so, how big an issue will Mamdani's leadership be for the midterm? It's got about 30 seconds for you. I said this way back, that the Democratic Party has lost. They have given up. And when you see Hokel take a knee to AOC, when you see Hakeem Jeffries take a knee, he's a — who is Hakeem Jeffries? And he's taking a knee to Zohreh Mamdani? Bernie, here's what I said to my Democratic friends. Stand up. This guy never should have been allowed to run on the Democratic line. He's a DSA. They should have kicked him off the line, stood up for what they thought was right. You know, it's like the insane are running the asylum now. You know, we watched this happen over a period — of decades. You know, it started back in the 1970s, when our universities started to get lost. And now they're totally lost. And he went into the universities. He's a product of the universities. His father teaches Marxism at Columbia University. How much more did you need? It's insane to me. It's insane to me, too. It's insane to me that he won, that he got elected. I'll be praying for New York City. And again, sometimes it's got to get darker before it gets brighter. So hopefully there's a light at the end of the tunnel. But I'm not seeing it right now. Vicky Palladino, God bless you. Thank you. Thank you for having me on. Thank you very much. Happy New Year.

U.S. forces have boarded a Venezuela-linked sanctioned oil tanker in the North Atlantic after pursuing it for weeks. The U.S. military also announced the seizure of a sanctioned tanker ship in the Caribbean Sea, the second vessel taken by American forces on Wednesday.

Venezuela Strikes

U.S. seizes two more sanctioned oil tankers with links to Venezuela

A woman was fatally shot by an ICE officer Wednesday morning in Minneapolis, the Department of Homeland Security says. CBS News' Nicole Sganga reports from the scene.

Minneapolis

Protesters gather after ICE shoots and kills woman in Minneapolis

The U.S. seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker that was being shadowed by a Russian submarine on Wednesday (Jan. 7), after a more than two-week-long pursuit across the Atlantic as part of a U.S. "blockade" of Venezuelan oil exports.

U.S. seizes Venezuela-linked oil tanker after weeks-long pursuit

Nick Reiner, the son of Rob and Michele Reiner, is set to be arraigned in the killing of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner. It comes as details emerge about his time in custody and how his mental health history could play a role in his case.

Los Angeles

Nick Reiner due in court on murder charges

Flights across France and Belgium and Eurostar train services have been severely disrupted by the winter weather.

Paris

Eurostar trains and hundreds of flights cancelled amid heavy snowfall

President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday urged security forces to distinguish between what he called rioters and protesters, urging them not to target peaceful demonstrators.

Tehran

Iran's President urges security forces not to target protesters

In Iran, protests that broke out on December 28th over the soaring cost of living look set to continue. Security forces fired tear gas at demonstrators in Tehran's Grand Bazaar on January 6: without giving numbers, Iran's IRNA news agency said 'some' people were arrested.

Death toll rises as Iran's security forces clash with protesters

Members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are reacting to the Trump administration's comments on a potential Greenland takeover from Denmark.

Nuuk

European leaders blast Trump over Greenland takeover discussions

Donald Trump says Venezuela will hand over as much as 50 million barrels of oil and he will control the profits.

Washington

Trump says Venezuela will turn over 30-50 million barrels of oil

Britain and France have said they could send troops to Ukraine if a ceasefire is agreed. The pledge came at a Paris meeting of 30 nations, including the US, on security guarantees demanded by Kyiv before any peace deal.

London

Ukraine Invasion

UK, France ready to deploy troops in Ukraine after ceasefire

Colombian President Gustavo Petro said he would “take up arms” in the face of threats issued by US President Donald Trump.

Bogotá

Colombia vows to defend its sovereignty amid Trump’s military threats

Israeli forces storm Birzeit University in the occupied West Bank soon after students begin a sit-in in solidarity with jailed Palestinians.

Jerusalem

Middle East Conflict

Israeli school assault wounds dozens of Palestinians in West Bank raid

The White House says U.S. President Donald Trump and his team are considering a range of options in efforts to acquire Greenland as the ouster of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro continues to reverberate in the Western Hemisphere.

Trump sees acquiring Greenland as a national security priority

The United States for the first time backed a broad coalition of Ukraine's allies in vowing to provide security guarantees that leaders said would include binding commitments to support the country if it is attacked by Russia again.

U.S. backs security guarantees for Ukraine at summit of Kyiv's allies

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed deep concern over recent U.S. military action in Venezuela, calling for the immediate release of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

Soweto

Ramaphosa urges UN action after U.S. capture of Maduro

At least 25 people have been killed in Iran during the first nine days of protests that started in the bazaar of Tehran over the plunging value of the currency and soaring inflation, according to rights groups. This video contains graphic images.

Rights groups say at least 25 dead in Iran protests

The administration of President Donald Trump is planning to meet with executives from U.S. oil companies later this week to discuss boosting Venezuelan oil production after U.S. forces ousted its leader Nicolas Maduro, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Trump administration sets meetings with oil firms on Venezuela: source

Uncertainty in Venezuela has crossed into neighboring Colombia, especially after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested Colombian President Gustavo Petro could face U.S. action following the capture of Nicolás Maduro.

Tension rises in Colombia after Maduro’s capture

Nicolas Maduro appeared in a US courtroom on January 5, 2026. He pleaded "Not Guilty" to drug trafficking and other charges, insisting he is still Venezuela's president. Maduro's kidnapping is being justified by the Trump administration as a "surgical law enforcement operation", but what proof is the case resting on?

Maduro pleads 'not guilty' in U.S. drug trafficking case

Local authorities in Crans-Montana admitted failing to conduct fire and safety inspections at Le Constellation bar, where a fire killed 40 and injured 116 during New Year celebrations.

Crans-Montana

Swiss Alps bar not inspected for five years prior to deadly fire

Twelve Israeli military vehicles have entered the Quneitra countryside in southern Syria. Several villages there have been the target of repeated Israeli raids in recent months. Tuesday's incursions come as discussions between an Israeli and Syrian delegation are expected to continue in Paris - mediated and coordinated by the U.S.

Beit Jinn

Israeli army vehicles enter southern Syria ahead of Paris talks

Following the largest anti-corruption investigation of his presidency, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has launched a significant shake-up of the government and his office, with a series of dismissals and appointments in top political and security roles.

Kyiv

Ukraine's security service chief resigns amid Zelenskyy's reshuffle

The capture of Nicolás Maduro is prompting strong reaction from Venezuelans in the United States, and those who fled across the border into Colombia. Lilia Luciano has more on the two women vying to lead the country. Then, Cristian Benavides reports on opposing viewpoints on U.S. intervention.

Caracas

Two women vying to run Venezuela amid opposing viewpoints

Police and the Secret Service are investigating a break-in at Vice President JD Vance's Ohio home. CBS News' Shanelle Kaul has more.

Cincinnati

Vice President JD Vance's Ohio home broken into

Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife pleaded not guilty Monday to federal drug trafficking and weapons charges, days after they were captured by U.S. military forces in a stunning overnight operation and brought to New York City for prosecution.

Manhattan

Maduro, wife plead not guilty to charges in New York

A Paris court on Monday (January 5) found 10 people guilty of the cyber-harassment of France's first lady, Brigitte Macron, for spreading false claims that she is a transgender woman who was born male.

Ten convicted for cyber-bullying France's Brigitte Macron

Nicolás Maduro's vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, was officially sworn in as Venezuela's acting president. President Donald Trump warned he could go after her if she doesn't comply with U.S. demands, including access to the country's oil supply.

Trump says U.S. "in charge" of Venezuela

A Paris ​court on Monday found ten people guilty ⁠of the cyber-harassment of France's first lady, Brigitte Macron, for spreading false claims she is a transgender ​woman who was born a man. The court convicted all defendants to sentences ranging from a cyberbullying awareness training to 8-month suspended prison sentences.

Ten people found guilty of cyberbullying Brigitte Macron

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is set to appear in a U.S. court on Monday (January 5) on drug charges after his controversial capture by American forces. President Donald Trump says he could order another strike if Venezuela’s interim government doesn’t cooperate.

Trump warns of second strike as Maduro faces U.S. drug charges

Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is being housed at Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn, after he was captured by U.S. forces and flown to New York to face federal drug trafficking and weapons charges.

Breakdown