Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor in New York City, defended his politics in a Monday interview in response to President Trump repeatedly labeling him a “communist.”

CNN’s Erin Burnett played a compilation of clips of Trump calling Mamdani a communist and asked Mamdani directly, “Are you?”

“No. I’m a democratic socialist,” Mamdani said. “I’ve said that time and again.”

Mamdani said it reveals something about the state of American politics that Trump is dissatisfied with amplifying Mamdani’s true identity of “democratic socialist” and instead continues to call him a communist.

“I think it reflects the fact that… whereas that identity would have been enough for Donald Trump in the past, now he doesn’t even want to use that because he knows that the message of my politics is one that is connecting with New Yorkers across the five boroughs. It’s a message of dignity in each and every person’s life.”

Mamdani nodded to his comfortable lead in recent general election polling and suggested the president is going through stages of grief, as he comes to terms with the possibility that a democratic socialist might be elected his hometown mayor.

“And what we’re seeing in these clips, and what we’re seeing in what Donald Trump says, is he’s going through the many stages of grief,” Mamdani said.

“First, it’s denial that this could ever take place. Now it’s acceptance, and still, through it all, he is looking to use every tool at his disposal to help Andrew Cuomo become the next mayor of this city.”

Earlier on Monday, Trump repeated his frustrations with the mayoral nominee and warned that he “is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great city.”

“Self proclaimed New York City Communist, Zohran Mamdani, who is running for Mayor, will prove to be one of the best things to ever happen to our great Republican Party,” Trump said on Truth Social. “He is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great city.”

“Remember, he needs the money from me, as President, in order to fulfill all of his fake communist promises. He won’t be getting any of it, so what’s the point of voting for him?”