I have to say I'm finding the effort by Democrat Rep. Haley Stevens (MI-11) pretty interesting and amusing as we count down the days to the election.
As we reported, while Stevens has officially supported her primary opponent, Abdul El-Sayed, after he won, she has been saying things that have not been helpful to him by voicing her concerns about his appeal to Jewish and black voters. Even her own fiancé, Jason Turkish, has now flipped to supporting El-Sayed's Republican opponent, Mike Rogers.
But when she went on CNN on Wednesday, while saying she wanted him to win, she also called on him to denounce the ad he did put out with Tucker Carlson and the anti-Israel ad his team said they weren't affiliated with that blamed Israel for the cost of American groceries. She said there were a lot of voters who were undecided, who were "hurt" and "confused." She essentially bodied him in the process of "supporting" him.
So it was a little surprising to report earlier that she planned to campaign with El-Sayed on Sunday with Democrat Rep. Jim Clyburn (SC-06). So I wondered if he had agreed to denounce the ads.
Now she's put out a statement. She said that his prior statement that he wasn't affiliated with the grocery ad was insufficient: “A disclaimer is not a condemnation, and everyone in my community knows the difference.”
Stevens said she agreed to appear with him on Sunday because she heard through "Democrat leaders and emissaries" that he would finally condemn the grocery ad. But at the same time, she "urged voters and the media to confirm it with Abdul directly." So she still wanted him to put it on the record.
Then she did El-Sayed in again.
“But the ad did not invent its argument; it dramatized one Dr. El-Sayed has made in his own words throughout this campaign: that Israel is the reason Michigan cannot afford schools, health care, and child care,” she continued. “The standard here is simple. If those words are wrong when a Political Action Committee supporting his campaign says them, then they are equally wrong when Abdul says them, and Abdul has said them from the start. I therefore expect him to apologize for those statements as well.”
She said that El-Sayed needs to “begin by getting Israel out of his explanation for everything Michigan cannot afford.”
And she said it is her “hope and expectation” that El-Sayed will take down a campaign ad featuring Tucker Carlson out of “respect for Michigan’s Black community,” calling the advertisement “an insult to the congregation that will welcome us on Sunday.”
Can you really see the narcissistic El-Sayed saying okay to what she demands? I can't. At best, I can see him saying something that is generic about how he didn't mean to offend anyone with any words he may have said. But the problem is, even if he says anything now, it's basically because he's being held over a barrel; it isn't because he actually believes it or is going to change who he essentially is. So who is going to believe it at this point? And he could also tick off his virulent anti-Israel base if he says something they don't like.
So this is juicy — grab the popcorn! She's got him in a bind, and I'm curious to see how he wriggles out of it.
It already sounds like he's all in a lather over it, getting snippy with a reporter who asked why it took so long for them to appear together.
He replied that she was a congresswoman and he was on the trail, "so things get busy."
“Things get busy? Come on, that’s not an answer to this,” pressed the reporter.
“Jeff, you’re really asking the questions that the people want to hear, really. This is about the key things. Why can’t I afford my groceries?” hit back El-Sayed.
“Well, why has it taken until Sunday to campaign for somebody? Ask me a serious question,” El-Sayed fumed.
“I think she would call that a serious question,” the reporter insisted.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
Help RedState continue to report on the Democrats’ radicalism and inform voters as our nation faces a crossroads. Join RedState VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the Conversation
VIP members get the ability to comment on articles.