Florida official thanks Economic Developer of the Year Mamdani with savage Times Square billboard

Florida business boosters are trolling New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani in the heart of Times Square — thanking him for sending jobs, companies and wealthy residents south as the Sunshine State looks to capitalize on a years-long migration of New Yorkers.The Florida Chamber of Commerce on Monday unveiled a digital billboard at Broadway and West 43rd Street naming Mamdani Florida’s “Economic Developer of the Year” and declaring: “Thanks for the jobs!”“We wanted to thank him for the jobs, the companies, the people that they’re pushing out of New York — and a lot of them are coming to Florida,” Florida Chamber CEO Mark Wilson told Fox News Digital.The stunt comes against the backdrop of a migration pipeline that swelled during the COVID era, when remote work and a hunt for more space helped accelerate departures from New York — particularly among prime working-age and higher-income households.Wilson said the Times Square billboard is less about celebrating New York’s losses than promoting Florida’s economic model.“Even though Florida is winning right now, we’re not looking for New York to lose.We’re hoping that these other states will say ‘no’ to this move towards socialism and say ‘yes’ to the very policies that our country was founded on,” he said.“This isn’t about spiking a football or looking at the scoreboard about Florida versus New York.

This is really about trying to save our country from crazy.”The Chamber is already eyeing other cities for future versions of the campaign.“We had to start in New York City because the mayor of New York City, obviously, is pushing that community into a direction that it’s not good for the people who live there,” Wilson said.“But there’s several runner-ups for this,” he added.“When you look at Chicago, when you look at California, Minneapolis, there’s places all over the country that come in a close second to the movement in New York City.

So we’re gonna contin...