‘What are you implying?’: El-Sayed confronts critics head-on as attacks ramp up
Against a backdrop of rising Islamophobia, Michigan Senate hopeful has challenged premise of repeated questions on Muslim Brotherhood, Israel and faith As a candidate positioned at the center of what researchers say are the worst Islamophobic attacks seen since the aftermath of 9/11, many would expect Abdul El-Sayed to simply defend himself and move on. Instead, the Democratic candidate for US Senate in Michigan has…
Key points
- Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan, has responded to repeated questions about the Muslim Brotherhood, Israel and his faith by asking critics what they are implying.
- A town hall exchange in which he challenged a questioner has been viewed more than 50m times, and the man was later identified as a former aide to Republican senator Josh Hawley.
- Islamophobic posts naming El-Sayed rose almost 1,900% in the week after his primary win, according to the Center for the Study of Organized Hate.
Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate for US Senate in Michigan, is meeting repeated questions about the Muslim Brotherhood, Israel and his faith by challenging the assumptions behind them rather than simply defending himself. The Guardian reports that researchers describe the attacks against him as the worst Islamophobic attacks seen since the aftermath of 9/11.
In a town hall exchange this weekend that has been viewed more than 50m times, a man in the crowd asked El-Sayed to disavow the Muslim Brotherhood. El-Sayed agreed, then asked: "What are you implying? Do you assume that I wouldn't?" He stayed on the exchange for five minutes, comparing the question to past doubts about JFK's Catholicism and asking the man whether he would disavow reading religious doctrine into American law.
Questioner linked to Republican aide
The man was identified as Thomas Teepell, a former aide to Republican senator Josh Hawley. According to an FEC filing, his father's firm was paid $250,000 by a non-profit for "canvassing and influencer marketing" against El-Sayed, though nothing shows the son was paid. The article says the connection did not establish that the question was coordinated.
What are you implying? Do you assume that I wouldn't?
— Abdul El-Sayed
Primary win and media reaction
El-Sayed won the Democratic primary by about a point and a half after telling Aipac to "come for me", despite Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Senator Gary Peters backing rival Haley Stevens and more than $60m in outside money going her way. His direct style has earned him the nickname "Mean Mamdani" or "Meandami".
CBS News chief legal correspondent Jan Crawford praised the town hall questioner and called El-Sayed's response a "self-own", then deleted the post and apologized. CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss has reportedly encouraged journalists to pursue angles on El-Sayed's supposed Muslim Brotherhood sympathy; a CBS News spokesperson told Semafor its journalism would speak for itself.
