Former Rep. Pete King, R-N.Y., warned Monday that New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is validating the worst fears of Jewish New Yorkers by saying he would seek to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu if the Israeli prime minister were to visit the city.

Speaking on Newsmax's "National Report," King said Mamdani's remarks were never about legal authority, but were instead a calculated attempt to signal support for anti-Israel activists whom he believes make up a key part of the mayor's political base.

"What it means for the Jewish community is that all their worst fears are just reinforced by this," King said. "This guy is so dangerous. His basic views are antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Jewish, no matter how you want to phrase it."

The former Republican congressman said he believes those views will influence how Mamdani governs, particularly when it comes to protecting Jewish institutions and responding to anti-Israel demonstrations across the city.

"He's going to follow that in any way that he can, whether it's on demonstrations, whether it's on having security outside synagogues and temples with buffer zones," King said. "This man is dangerous. He really is."

He argued that Mamdani’s comments about Netanyahu are part of a broader ideological agenda that extends beyond foreign policy.

"And that's just the beginning of it," King said. "There's also his socialist views, his anti-police attitudes, his pro-crime attitude. These are dark days for the city of New York."

King dismissed the idea that Mamdani could actually order Netanyahu's arrest, saying the mayor understood he had no such authority. Instead, he argued, the comments were designed to energize supporters by taking aim at Israel's leader.

"I think he knew from the start he could not arrest Netanyahu," King said. "What he's doing is sending signals. He's sending antisemitic signals to what he thinks is his base."

He defended Netanyahu as "the duly elected leader of our closest ally in the Middle East, the only democracy in the Middle East," adding that the United States has deliberately refused to join the International Criminal Court because "it is corrupt."

King also questioned why leaders responsible for widespread human rights abuses have avoided similar scrutiny while Netanyahu has been singled out.

"All of the leaders in the Middle East, all of those Arab leaders, all of those who have violated human rights so terribly over the years, what has Mamdani ever said about them?” he said. “Just think of all the brutal dictators of the world and who’s he singling out? Benjamin Netanyahu, who is a duly elected democratic leader of our closest ally in the Middle East."

With Israel and the United States currently aligned against Iran, King said Mamdani's focus is misplaced and politically motivated.

"This guy and his priorities, they’re everywhere but the United States, and he wants to appeal to the worst instincts of his base,” King said. “And that's the antisemitism and anti-Jewish mentality.

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