Vance Escalates Attacks, Calls El-sayed a Security Threat
WHO:
CBS News - The article identified Abdul El-Sayed as born in the United States.
CBS News - Mike Rogers said in Congress in 2012 that “there are moderate Muslim Brotherhood members the U.S will have to talk to,” adding, “we are going to have to watch it carefully.”
CBS News - Ted Cruz called Abdul El-Sayed “the jihadist leprechaun.”
CBS News - El-Sayed campaign spokesperson Cole Wozniak said Cruz’s comments were “the latest example” of Republicans trying to distract voters from rising prices.
CBS News - El-Sayed said, “I have never been a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, I never will be a member of the Muslim Brotherhood.”
The Guardian - JD Vance, the US vice-president, attacked Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic candidate for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat. El-Sayed is 41, according to Ken Klippenstein’s Substack.
The Guardian - Donald Trump, identified by the article as the US president, called El-Sayed a “jihadist” and accused him of being “on the side of the terrorists.”
Ken Klippenstein | Substack - Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers, a former FBI agent and former Republican chair of the House Intelligence Committee, said El-Sayed’s “radical ideology is a threat to our national security.”
Ken Klippenstein | Substack - Senators Ted Cruz and Tim Sheehy raised security concerns about El-Sayed; Sheehy sits on the Armed Services Committee.
The Guardian - Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut criticized what he called a “coordinated” campaign to delegitimize Muslim Americans.
The Guardian - Robert F. Kennedy Jr., identified as Trump’s health and human services secretary, said “five hundred million Arabs in the world” do not contribute to science or literature, according to Murphy’s response.
WHAT:
CBS News - Rogers said he voted for legislation continuing U.S. funding to Egypt while Mohamed Morsi was president.
CBS News - Rogers told NBC that he sought to maintain U.S. relationships with Egyptian intelligence services that he said the Muslim Brotherhood was trying to undo.
CBS News - The article said the Obama administration engaged with Morsi’s government until Egypt’s military removed him from power in July 2013.
CBS News - El-Sayed said, “Judge me by my actions and my work,” and said his different way of praying should not be taken to mean he was not committed to the Constitution.
CBS News - Asked whether El-Sayed had dual loyalties, Cruz said, “I don't know about dual loyalties,” and said El-Sayed’s “demonstrated loyalties” were to the Muslim Brotherhood.
CBS News - Rogers’s campaign said the Muslim Brotherhood “stands for ideologies directly in contrast with American ideologies.”
CBS News - Cruz said a senator El-Sayed could be placed on the Senate Intelligence Committee and warned, “there is a very real risk that Americans will die as a result” if Cruz was correct that El-Sayed supported the Muslim Brotherhood.
CBS News - El-Sayed said he “absolutely” disavowed the Muslim Brotherhood at a town hall.
CBS News - The article said claims about El-Sayed’s ties to the Muslim Brotherhood arose partly from posts by his half-sister, Fatten Elkomy, in 2012 and 2013, alleging their birthmother had been active in the group in Egypt in the early 1970s.
CBS News - El-Sayed said his parents divorced when he was 3 and he was raised by his stepmother; he said he had not discussed his birthmother’s past with her.
CBS News - Cruz cited El-Sayed’s leadership of the University of Michigan Muslim Students’ Association chapter, a 2011 op-ed supporting protests against Hosni Mubarak, and a 2012 open letter supporting Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.
CBS News - The article said some branches of the Muslim Brotherhood were designated terrorist organizations by the Trump administration in January.
CBS News - Mike Rogers called the contest the “most important race in the country” and said, “He wants to represent Palestine, I want to represent Michigan.”
CBS News - Cruz said Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez could win the 2028 presidential election if nominated.
CBS News - CBS News Battleground Tracker rated the Michigan Senate race a toss-up.
The Guardian - Vance said that if rioters were “burning down New York, or Detroit,” Hasan Piker and El-Sayed would be “right there leading them and cheering them on.” He called the hatred and desire to destroy seen in France “the exact same cancer” that had corrupted El-Sayed.
NY Post - Vance called El-Sayed a “psychopath,” accused him of promoting “anti-white racial hatred,” and claimed he would likely kill off Michigan’s auto industry.
Ken Klippenstein | Substack - Trump said El-Sayed would be the only senator required to pass through a metal detector before entering the Senate. Cruz warned El-Sayed might share classified information with Muslim Brotherhood terrorists; Sheehy cited “serious national security questions.”
The Guardian - El-Sayed said depriving people of healthcare and affordable groceries was “evil,” and argued attacks on his name and faith distracted from people’s difficulty affording gas, groceries, and medical care.
The Guardian - Researchers said the midterm campaign had seen the most concentrated wave of Islamophobic rhetoric in U.S. electoral politics since the aftermath of 9/11.
WHERE:
CBS News - El-Sayed made his remarks about commitment to the Constitution in Marquette, Michigan.
The Guardian - Vance made the remarks at a campaign stop in Howell, Michigan, connecting El-Sayed to protests in Paris.
The Guardian - Trump and Vance made remarks during visits to Michigan; Vance’s comments referenced possible rioting in Detroit and New York.
WHY:
CBS News - El-Sayed said Republicans were suggesting he would have “dual loyalties” to the United States and another country if elected.
Ken Klippenstein | Substack - Rogers and other Republicans framed El-Sayed as a national-security risk, while El-Sayed’s campaign centers on affordability and healthcare.
The Guardian - Trump and allies portrayed demonstrations in France as evidence of dangers from immigration and the erosion of Western civilization.
HOW:
CBS News - The article said the Muslim Brotherhood is banned in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The Guardian - Vance linked El-Sayed to left-wing commentator Hasan Piker and French protests, described as beginning over crumbling schools and the rising cost of living.
The Guardian - Trump repeatedly used El-Sayed’s middle name, Mohamed, in attacks.
Ken Klippenstein | Substack - Security-related attacks included claims about classified access, security clearances, and possible placement on the Senate Intelligence Committee.
(UPDATED October 29, 2026 02:59 UTC)
President Trump, Vice-President JD Vance, and Republican lawmakers have attacked Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed with claims that he is tied to the Muslim Brotherhood and poses a national-security risk. El-Sayed denied any connection to the group, saying he had never been and never would be a member, while his campaign said the attacks distract from rising costs and healthcare; Democratic Senator Chris Murphy criticized what he called a coordinated effort to delegitimize Muslim Americans. The accusations have drawn on El-Sayed’s past political activity and family history, while Mike Rogers has also criticized his views, as the Michigan Senate race is rated a toss-up.
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(UPDATED October 28, 2026 20:01 UTC)
President Trump, Vice-President JD Vance, and Republican lawmakers have attacked Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed with claims that he is a national-security threat and supports the Muslim Brotherhood. El-Sayed has denied ever belonging to the group, saying the attacks on his faith distract from the rising cost of healthcare, groceries, and gas. His campaign spokesperson called the remarks an effort to divert voters from rising prices, while Democratic Senator Chris Murphy criticized what he described as a coordinated campaign against Muslim Americans.
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(UPDATED October 28, 2026 10:59 UTC)
President Trump and Vice-President JD Vance escalated attacks on Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, with Trump calling him a “jihadist” and Vance accusing him of supporting rioters and saying his views were a threat. Republican candidate Mike Rogers and Senators Ted Cruz and Tim Sheehy also raised national-security concerns, while Democratic Senator Chris Murphy condemned what he called a coordinated effort to delegitimize Muslim Americans. El-Sayed said the attacks on his name and faith distract from the cost of healthcare, groceries and gas, and researchers said the midterm campaign has seen an unusually concentrated wave of Islamophobic rhetoric.