Is Mamdani's new Office of Community Safety enough?

This week, Mayor Zohran Mamdani took a step toward reshaping how the city handles people having mental health crises, creating an Office of Community Safety, aimed at shifting some 911 calls away from the police department. But Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch says the change will be limited, with most calls still handled by officers. Political reporters Bobby Cuza and Dan Rivoli, along with Statehouse reporter Bernadette Hogan, break down the mayor's vision and what it could mean in practice. After that, St. Patrick's Day turned into a political challenge. City Hall waffled on parade plans, and Mamdani faced backlash for not weighing in about possible Irish reunification and comparing Ireland's struggle to Palestinians. The "Off Topic" team looks at how the annual parade continues to make political waves in New York.

You can listen to Is Mamdani's new Office of Community Safety enough? online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Is Mamdani's new Office of Community Safety enough? is an episode from Off Topic/On Politics by Misha Zilman.

This episode is 31:51 long.

This episode was published on Mar 20, 2026.

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