He came to the United States to study at the University of California at Berkeley and achieved a doctorate in Political Science.

He sued, successfully, the New York City Board of Education, requiring it to display Islamic crescents along with Christian and Jewish symbols during the holiday season.

M. T. Mehdi was a leading pro-Palestinian activist in the United States, and openly supported the Palestine Liberation Organization.

"[2] After the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, he gave counsel to the blind sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, who was later convicted and given a life sentence for his role in the attacks.

Regarding Arafat's red-carpet welcome from President Bill Clinton, M. T. Mehdi, then-president of the American Arab and Muslim Council, denounced Arafat as "... a pawn in the reelection bids of both Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres...", who visited the White House on April 30, 1996.