Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor, pointedly explained why he thinks President Donald Trump has levied attacks on his citizenship and threatened to arrest him in recent days. Trump simply needs a distraction, Mamdani argued in a press conference with New York City labor leaders on Wednesday.

It's one thing when the president relies on name-calling when targeting a perceived political foe. Talk about arrests is qualitatively different.

Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City and a state Assembly member, called the threat "an attack on our democracy."