US President Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani during his speech at the America250 rally held at the Iowa State Fairgrounds on Thursday evening. Speaking to a large crowd gathered to kick off a yearlong celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary, Trump branded Mamdani a “communist at the highest level”.He accused Mamdani of wanting to “destroy New York.” “I love New York, and we’re not going to let him do that,” he said. Trump went on to call Mamdani’s campaign part of a broader ideological threat, stating, “Generations of Americans before us did not shed their blood only so that we could surrender our country to Marxist lunatics on the eve of our 250th year.”Trump proclaimed, “As president of the United States, I’m proclaiming here and now that America is never going to be communist in any way, shape, form, and that includes New York City.”In a recent press conference, Trump again called Mamdani New York City’s Democratic mayoral candidate a “communist” and a “nut job” vowing to block federal funds if Mamdani doesn’t “do the right thing.”“He’s a communist. The last thing we need is a communist,” Trump said, adding, “I think I’m going to have a lot of fun watching him because he has to come right through this building to get his money.”Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist and state Assembly member, had earlier denied the claims on NBC’s Meet the Press, saying, “No, I am not [a communist]… Trump wants to distract from what I’m fighting for, working people he pretended to represent.”Also read | Trump targets Zohran Mamdani, vows to cut NYC funds if Democratic frontrunner becomes mayor