TLPP: New York is F'd w/ Rafael Mangual of the Manhattan Institute
New York City is heading in the wrong direction — and Rafael Mangual of the Manhattan Institute is here to break down exactly why.
In this episode of the LoU Perez Podcast, Rafael and I discuss the real story behind the Washington Square Park snowball attack on NYPD officers, why anti-police disrespect has become normalized, the media's deliberate obfuscation of the Gracie Mansion IED attack, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani's dangerous blind spots on public safety.
Topics Covered:
- The Washington Square Park "snowball fight" and what it actually revealed about anti-police sentiment
- "Is This What Fear Looks Like?" — Rafael's viral piece on the myth of police brutality
- How progressive guilt culture has made New Yorkers afraid to call the cops
- The media's shameful framing of the Gracie Mansion IED attack
- Mayor Mamdani's failure to name the perpetrators or their motivations
- Why disbanding the NYPD's Strategic Response Group is dangerous
- The revolving door of the criminal justice system (and why the average prisoner has 10–12 prior arrests before incarceration)
- New York as a "luxury product" — and why it's losing customers
- Low voter turnout, fringe political power, and who really runs NYC
Rafael Mangual is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and author of "Criminal (In)Justice." His work appears in City Journal, the New York Post, and the Wall Street Journal. https://amzn.to/4tdd8mD
Follow Rafael:
X/Twitter: https://x.com/Rafa_Mangual
Manhattan Institute: https://www.manhattan-institute.org
City Journal: https://www.city-journal.org
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Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro & Rafael's background
01:07 – Washington Square Park snowball fight: what really happened
05:23 – Anti-police disrespect and what it signals
09:07 – "The Talk" and the contradiction in police narratives
14:35 – Confrontations on NYC subway: antisocial power plays
28:57 – When did Democrats stop caring about order?
30:15 – Why progressives won't call the cops
37:02 – The revolving door: prison, recidivism & Heather Mac Donald
49:22 – The Gracie Mansion IED attack
51:33 – Media obfuscation and Mayor Mamdani's failed response
56:44 – Disbanding the NYPD's Strategic Response Group
59:35 – Is this a wake-up call for Mamdani?
1:02:22 – NYC as a luxury product — and why people are leaving
1:04:20 – Wrap-up
Lou Perez is a comedian, author, and producer. He's appeared on Gutfeld!, FOX News Primetime, and One Nation with Brian Kilmeade. He was Head Writer and Producer of the Webby Award-winning We the Internet TV, and his sketch "Wolverine's Claws Suck" has over 20 million views. He hosts The Lou Perez Podcast on the Lions of Liberty Network.