Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed brushed aside criticism from Republican rival Mike Rogers over his campaign appearances with streamer Hasan Piker, then pivoted to condemning threats of political violence, during an appearance on CNN’s “The Source” Thursday.
Rogers has criticized El-Sayed for campaigning alongside Piker, who has made comments suggesting America deserved the September 11 attacks. Asked about the criticism, El-Sayed said it was “sad” that Rogers was focused on the issue rather than matters he says affect voters directly.
“It’s sad. He doesn’t really want to talk about any of the issues people are really facing. … [I]f he thinks that the issue is a streamer in California, then he’s got another thing coming,” El-Sayed said.
Host Kaitlan Collins then raised a separate incident at the Republican Convention in Texas, where an attendee reportedly said El-Sayed “should be shot” after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) mentioned El-Sayed in a speech. El-Sayed used the moment to argue that violent rhetoric has become too common in American politics without sufficient pushback.
“This is what has become normal in our politics, literally calls to violence, and the inability for anybody to actually call it out. Democracy is supposed to be the process by which we solve our problems peacefully. We can learn to disagree agreeably,” El-Sayed said.
He continued, saying such statements should trouble people across the political spectrum. “When you hear that kind of call to violence, it should be shuddering to all of us. We have a responsibility to lower the temperature, to realize that this is not a bloodsport where you’re just trying to bash the other guy, this is about actually solving problems that real people face,” he said.
El-Sayed also framed his motivation for entering politics around health care, saying the current system is “more interested in billing than healing.” He added that he hoped anyone who heard about the Republican Convention remark would “call it out for what it is, a call to violence that ought to be condemned across the board.”
He closed by saying he wants politics refocused on “the ability to live a dignified life” and argued that democracy, if upheld, remains “the best means we have to solving the challenges that we face together.”
The exchange comes amid a closely watched Michigan Senate race between El-Sayed and Rogers, with national implications for the chamber’s balance of power.
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