Sen. Bill Cassidy is putting New York City's new mayor on notice — and backing it up with $2.2 billion worth of leverage.
The Daily Caller reported that Cassidy, the Louisiana Republican, who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, announced Thursday the launch of a probe into NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani over what Cassidy called the mayor's "recent actions that embolden antisemitism and put Jewish New Yorkers in harm's way."
The investigation follows a letter Cassidy sent to Mamdani on Wednesday, laying out the stakes in unmistakable terms.
At issue: Mamdani's decision, among his first acts as mayor, to let two executive orders protecting Jewish New Yorkers quietly expire. One expanded the city's definition of antisemitism in line with the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance framework.
The other barred city officials from participating in the BDS movement against Israel. Both were signed by Mamdani's predecessor, former Mayor Eric Adams — and both are now gone.
Cassidy's letter didn't mince words about what's at risk. As of June 2025, the NYC Department of Education's operating budget reflected $2.2 billion in total federal funding. Cassidy made clear that the figure isn't guaranteed:
"Continued eligibility for this funding is contingent on compliance with federal civil rights laws and applicable executive orders designed to protect students."
That's not a vague warning. It's a direct line drawn between Mamdani's policy choices and the federal dollars flowing into New York City's school system. Cassidy is telling the mayor that stripping antisemitism protections has consequences — and those consequences carry a price tag that even City Hall can't ignore.
New York City is home to roughly 1.77 million Jewish residents — the largest Jewish community outside of Israel, comprising about 9.1 percent of New York State's total population. Cassidy framed the situation in those terms directly:
"New York City is home to the largest Jewish community outside of Israel, with approximately 1.77 million Jewish residents—about 9.1 percent of the state's total population. Strong leadership against antisemitism and discrimination is essential to the safety and security of Jewish New Yorkers. As Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), I find it deeply troubling that one of your first official acts as mayor was to revoke two executive orders designed to protect students and combat antisemitism."
One of his first official acts. Not a policy buried in a budget reconciliation. Not a quiet regulatory tweak. Mamdani walked into the mayor's office and made dismantling antisemitism protections a priority.
This didn't come out of nowhere. Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, has faced significant backlash over anti-Israel rhetoric. He has previously failed to explicitly condemn the phrase "globalize the intifada" — a phrase widely viewed as a call to violence against Jewish people.
So when Mamdani scrapped the IHRA antisemitism definition and the anti-BDS executive order within weeks of taking office, the signal wasn't subtle. He didn't inherit these protections and let them lapse through oversight. He made a choice — and made it fast.
Cassidy connected the dots in his Thursday statement posted to X:
"Whatever somebody's ideological background, if they're in a position of responsibility, they must protect their citizens."
He followed that with a sharper point:
"Clearly, antisemitism has been on the rise. We must respond to real dangers directed at Jewish students."
Mamdani's office did not respond to requests for comment. That silence is its own kind of answer.
When a U.S. senator with jurisdiction over education funding publicly questions whether your city is complying with federal civil rights law, most mayors respond. They push back, they explain, they negotiate. Mamdani offered nothing.
It's worth noting what Cassidy is actually asking here. This isn't a partisan fishing expedition. He's asking why a mayor of a city with nearly two million Jewish residents chose to eliminate protections specifically designed to keep Jewish students safe — and whether that choice puts the city out of compliance with federal law. That's the HELP Committee chairman doing exactly what his committee exists to do.
The timeline tells its own story. In June 2025, Eric Adams signed an executive order adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism for New York City — a widely recognized international framework.
In December 2025, Adams signed a second order preventing city officials from participating in the BDS movement. Whatever else you might say about Adams, he recognized the threat and acted.
Mamdani took office and, within weeks, dismantled both. Two executive orders. Two protections for the largest urban Jewish population on the planet. Both gone before the new mayor had been in office long enough to learn where the good coffee is at City Hall.
The broader dynamic here matters. For years, progressive municipal leaders have operated as though they exist in a separate political universe from Washington — free to pursue ideological projects without consequence. Sanctuary cities. Defund movements. Now, scrapping antisemitism protections in the nation's largest city.
Cassidy's probe is a reminder that federal funding comes with federal expectations. The $2.2 billion flowing into New York City's education system isn't a gift. It's contingent on compliance with civil rights law.
If Mamdani wants to run New York City as a laboratory for democratic socialist priorities, he can. But he doesn't get to do it with federal money earmarked for student safety while simultaneously stripping the protections that make students safe.
"It is my job to ensure every student feels safe, and at a time when Jewish students feel scared, I am concerned your actions will only exacerbate their fears."
That's the core of it. Jewish students in New York City are watching their mayor dismantle the protections that were built for them — and a senator from Louisiana is the one standing up to say it's not acceptable.
Mamdani chose this fight. Now it has a price tag.
