CNN’s Abby Phillip pressed New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani (D) on his plan to open several government-run grocery stores, saying critics have correctly pointed out the socialist strategy has failed to work in other major cities.
Mamdani, during an appearance on CNN Newsnight on Friday, argued there have been “studies” that show the “applicability” of taxpayer-funded grocery stores in major cities like Chicago — and that gives him confidence they would work well in New York. He said he plans to open five government-run stores — one for each borough of the city — if he’s elected mayor in November. Phillip pushed back on Mamdani’s unnamed studies, saying there is a real world example that suggests it would be a train wreck.
“Another example is in Kansas City, where they had a government-run grocery store. And it’s been there for years, but it’s on the verge of closing because it doesn’t work,” Phillip said. “They’ve been riddled with crime. They’ve dealt with just a lack of inventory. There are other examples where it just hasn’t worked because, frankly, the government is not that good at being in the business of being in grocery stores.”…