The Rudy Giuliani attack on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has moved from political criticism into familiar anti-LGBTQ+ territory, after the former mayor used his online program to suggest that Mamdani’s free child-care plans have a hidden agenda.
During an episode of America’s Mayor Live, Giuliani questioned the idea of educating children from infancy and asked where the money for such a program would come from. But his argument quickly moved beyond the cost of child care.
Giuliani suggested that publicly funded education could be used to influence children about gender identity and expose them to transgender people.
“You teach them that it’s OK to be a transvestite. In fact, you have transvestites come to school and give lectures to show them it’s perfectly OK. And if you want to change your gender and you don’t want to tell your parents, perfectly — parents are the enemy.”
Those are Giuliani’s allegations, not established facts about Mamdani’s child-care program.
What Is Mamdani Actually Proposing?
Mamdani has made universal child care a major part of his affordability agenda. His administration, working with Gov. Kathy Hochul, launched New York City’s first 2-K program this year, initially creating more than 2,000 free seats for two-year-olds. The city has since begun extending offers to families, with the broader goal of eventually providing free care and early education for children from six weeks through age five.
There is a legitimate debate over how much a universal program would cost. However, there is no evidence presented by Giuliani that the child-care program itself is a covert effort to turn children transgender.
That distinction matters, particularly when LGBTQ+ issues are already being used as a political flashpoint.
READ: Mayor Mamdani’s First January Shows Major Crime Drops in NYC
Why Is Mamdani Such a Target?
Mamdani’s politics make him an easy target for conservatives. He openly identifies as a democratic socialist, supports LGBTQ+ rights, and has promoted an expansive role for city government in areas including housing, child care, food affordability, and worker protections.
At the same time, some of his administration’s early numbers have given supporters ammunition.
Happy Tax Day, New York. We’re taxing the rich. pic.twitter.com/Wky2LFXC9W
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) April 15, 2026
NYPD statistics showed murders fell 24.7% during the first half of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025, while overall major crime declined 5.8%. That is a significant improvement, although credit for crime trends should not automatically be assigned to one mayor because policing, demographics, and other factors also contribute.
According to documented New York, Mamdani’s administration has also reported an estimated $104 million in additional tips going to delivery workers following the city’s crackdown on deceptive tipping practices by delivery apps.
And this week, Mamdani announced plans to explore a thermal-energy system that could remove heat from sweltering subway stations and reuse it to heat nearby municipal buildings in winter. If developed as proposed, officials say it could be the first such transit thermal-energy network in the United States.
So why are conservatives like Giuliani attacking Mamdani?
There is plenty to legitimately argue about: the cost of universal child care, taxes, policing, housing and the role of government. But turning free preschool into an alleged LGBTQ+ indoctrination scheme is not a debate about whether the program works. It’s a culture-war argument about what conservatives fear Mamdani represents.