Mamdani’s Socialist War on Gifted Kids

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In this episode of the Ayn Rand Institute podcast, Ben Bayer and Samantha Watkins challenge Zohran Mamdani’s plan to phase out NYC’s Gifted & Talented program — a move that would hold back advanced students from the education they need to thrive — and replace it with universal free childcare.

Topics include:

• NYC’s Gifted & Talented Program
• Mamdani’s Reasons to End G&T 
• Mamdani’s Universal Childcare Proposal
• The Goal is Punishing Gifted Kids
• The Reaction to Mamdani’s Proposals
• Education is Not Zero-Sum

Resources: 

• Ayn Rand, “The Age of Envy”, Return of the Primitive
• Ayn Rand, “The Comprachicos”, Return of the Primitive

This episode was recorded on November 5, 2025, and posted on November 13, 2025. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Watch archived podcasts here.

Image Credits: [Child]: Catherine Delahaye /
DigitalVision / via Getty Images
[Mamdani]: Stephanie Keith / Stringer / via Getty Images