As my colleague Kyle Becker wrote Sunday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul tried to gain favor with Muslim voters by donning a scarf at the Islamic Cultural Center of New York in Upper Manhattan. Whether it was technically a hijab remains subject to debate, but a headscarf is worn by many Muslim women to show their modesty. You can also see in the video that she took off her shoes.

My first question: isn’t that cultural appropriation, the scourge that the Left has taught us is the height of evil? This would seem to be a textbook example.

Becker points out that it’s part of a trend in Democrat circles:

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is the latest to submit to Muslim men, indulging their preference that women cover their heads when going out in society.

On Friday, Hochul readily jettisoned her feminist garb and adopted the Muslim one to impress an audience of New York City Zohran Mamdani's friends.

Former Los Angeles Mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt had one of the most succinct reactions on social media:

It’s not the first time Hochul has put on something that at least resembles a hijab, but she’s taking plenty of heat over it this go around. Considering we’re less than two weeks out from the 25th anniversary of 9/11, it might not have been the best time to pull the antics — in New York City, of all places.

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President Donald Trump is no fan of the mayor who refuses to work with ICE to clean up former President Joe Biden's gigantic illegal immigration mess. You knew he'd notice the blowback against Hochul, and on Tuesday, he did, calling her the Worst Governor in the Country:

Your obvious pandering isn’t going to help you with the Arab vote, he told her, because they simply don’t like you:

Kathy Hochul, considered the Worst Governor in the Country, in a recent picture working hard to get the Arab Vote, even though they can’t stand her! Congestion Pricing in Manhattan is hurting her with everybody, but especially the people for whom she wears the hijab. The whole thing is CRAZY! President DONALD J. TRUMP

I only take one issue with the president's framing: in my ranking, California Gov. Gavin Newsom is far and away the worst governor in the nation. Illinois' JB Pritzker, Virginia's Abigail Spanberger, and Hochul all deserve high honors in that department, though.

Trump is referring to Manhattan’s congestion pricing, the money-grabbing scheme that went into effect on January 5, 2025, and which charges a $9 toll to drivers entering below 60th Street. Hochul pushed the plan for years, while Trump has strongly opposed it.

The problem? The penalty hits working drivers — cab operators, Uber drivers, and deliverymen — the hardest. So much for affordability.

There isn’t a large group of drivers of Arabic descent in the Big Apple, but a huge number of them are Muslim, so much so that it’s often difficult to find a cab on Islamic holidays:

New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission said that its roughly 150,000 drivers come from 167 countries. Bangladesh accounts for the largest share of medallion drivers (24 percent), followed by Pakistan (10 percent). Both are majority-Muslim countries.

Those drivers will be even less happy when the toll goes up to $12 in 2028 and $15 in 2031.

Republican nominee for governor Bruce Blakeman, who will face off against Hochul in the November general election, noted it was a heckuva moment for Hochul to be cosplaying at Islamic centers:

Kathy Hochul will say whatever she needs to say and become whoever she needs to become when there are votes on the line.

Less than two weeks before the 25th anniversary of 9/11, this kind of political pandering is especially tone-deaf.

New Yorkers deserve a Governor with principles that don’t change depending on the audience.

Well said.