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Abdul El‑Sayed went on NBC’s Meet the Press and tried to teach a lesson in modern campaign arithmetic: it’s better to talk to controversial audiences than to judge those who attract them. The Democratic U.S. Senate candidate says he doesn’t agree with Hasan Piker’s past incendiary remarks — including the one about 9/11 — but that he wants to reach Piker’s followers. Nice speech. Bad politics.
El‑Sayed’s Meet the Press moment: outreach over judgment
On Meet the Press, host Kristen Welker pressed Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El‑Sayed about his decision to campaign alongside streamer Hasan Piker. El‑Sayed’s answer was predictable: he emphasized outreach, saying the three million people who listen to Piker are voters he needs to talk to. He also said he disagrees with the past “America deserved 9/11” line and pointed out Piker has walked some comments back. That’s not exactly a full-throated disavowal — it’s a strategy memo dressed up as moral clarity.
Why the strategy is risky for Democrats in Michigan
Here’s the blunt truth: courting a controversial online personality with a history of inflammatory comments plays great in chat rooms, but it doesn’t play well at kitchen tables. Michigan is a battleground state. The Republican nominee, Mike Rogers, is waiting to paint any Democrat who shares a stage with extreme voices as too radical. Saying “I don’t agree with that comment” while hugging the audience that cheered it is not going to reassure suburban voters, moderate independents, or Jewish communities who were rightly upset by those past lines.
Calling it what it is — political math, not principle
El‑Sayed frames this as standing up to cancel culture and expanding the coalition. Fine. Politics is about winning votes. But voters also care about judgment. If your strategy is to put quantity of eyeballs over quality of judgment, expect opponents to weaponize that calculus. Democrats who defended outreach should be honest: outreach can become endorsement by association. When the national media and donors start asking for clearer lines, “context” won’t be enough.
El‑Sayed had a chance on national TV to close the loop: commit to clear limits on public appearances with controversial figures during the general election, name the specific lines he won’t cross, and show voters he respects their concerns. Instead, he emphasized audience size and accused critics of playing “gotcha politics.” That’s a neat talking point for late-night streams, but in a tight Michigan Senate race it looks like political amateur hour. If he wants to beat Mike Rogers, he should prove he can choose his allies wisely — not just count their followers.
