January 1, Cardinal Dolan Tickled Over NYC Mayor Snub

Wyatt’s Take

• Cardinal Dolan says NYC’s new socialist mayor ignored Catholic tradition.
• Dolan calls out being left out of key events and bumps with Vice President Vance.
• Longstanding ties between mayors and the Church fray under Mamdani’s lead.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who just retired as New York’s archbishop, didn’t hold back when talking about New York City’s new mayor, Zohran Mamdani. “I was ticked off he didn’t invite me to his inauguration. Most of the time the archbishop of New York, among other religious leaders, gets invited. I was ticked off that he … had few, few, few, few, few, few Catholics on his transition team,” Dolan told EWTN’s Mark Irons.

“And then I was really ticked off that he didn’t show up at the installation of my successor,” the cardinal emphasized.

This breaks a tradition going back to 1939 where NYC mayors show up to welcome a new archbishop. Not just Dolan, but no Catholic clergy were invited to the inauguration, either. A City Hall spokesperson blamed Mamdani’s absence from Archbishop Ronald Hicks’s installation on a scheduling conflict.

Even so, about a third of adults in New York City call themselves Catholic, based on recent Pew studies.

Dolan also spoke about Vice President JD Vance. He called Vance “a very good guy” but said they’ve disagreed on some things, including immigration and Church motives. “He [Vance] and I had a little tête-à-tête … when he suggested that bishops in the United States were pro-immigrant because we were making money, which I said was not only untrue, it was scurrilous,” Dolan added. “And he apologized.”

The cardinal, widely seen as a conservative voice, said Americans “ought to bristle if somebody identifies himself or herself as a socialist,” arguing that socialism is “sort of the opposite of what America is.” Still, he noted the mayor is “a refreshingly honest and approachable guy and obviously a man of high ideals, some of which I would disagree with.”

Dolan asked the mayor why he’s labeled a socialist—Mamdani said, “Because I am,” clarifying he sees himself as “kind of an economic socialist, not a political one.”

While retired as archbishop, Dolan remains a cardinal and part of the top Catholic hierarchy. He played a role in electing the first American pope, Leo XIV, in 2025. Mamdani, by contrast, is the city’s first Muslim mayor and used three Qurans during his swearing-in ceremonies.

Keep an eye on how these leaders set the tone for faith, tradition, and who gets a seat at the table as new faces rise in city halls and churches.

Wyatt Matters

This story strikes at the heart of Middle America values: respect for tradition, honesty, and keeping faith at the center of public life. When old customs get tossed aside, everyday people notice—and it says something about where the country is headed.

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