Mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani (D) came under fire Friday night on CNN as anchor Abby Phillip pressed him on his controversial plan to open five government-run grocery stores in New York City � one in each borough � a taxpayer-funded experiment critics say is doomed to repeat the failures seen in other U.S. cities.

Mamdani, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, insisted the program could work. �There have been studies that show the applicability of taxpayer-funded grocery stores in major cities like Chicago,� he told Phillip. �This is something I believe will work. We will bring the best and the brightest to deliver it.�

But Phillip quickly shot back. �Another example is in Kansas City, where they had a government-run grocery store. It opened in 2018, received nearly $18 million in taxpayer funding, and it�s already on the verge of closing,� Phillip said. �They�ve been riddled with crime, they�ve dealt with a lack of inventory. Frankly, the government is not that good at being in the business of grocery stores.�

Mamdani brushed off the Kansas City example, calling it a reason to �prove excellence, not abandon the idea.� �For every one example that you can point to,� Mamdani argued, �there�s another municipality today considering opening a city-run grocery store. The most important thing is the outcome.�

He pegged the cost of the proposal at $60 million, which he described as �less than half the city�s already spending on subsidized corporate supermarkets.�

But critics warned that Mamdani was ignoring the very real failures elsewhere.

�Taxpayers shouldn�t be forced to bankroll an experiment that�s already failed in Kansas City,� one New York business leader told CNN after the segment. �If Mamdani wants to prove socialism works, he can do it with his own money � not ours.�

Even Phillip, who pressed him throughout, wasn�t convinced. �You�re proposing something that�s already failed in practice,� she said. �Why should New Yorkers believe your plan won�t collapse the same way?�

Mamdani held his ground. �I�m optimistic our government-run stores will not suffer the same fate,� he replied. �This is about feeding New Yorkers and proving a better system is possible.�

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)