JD Vance smears Abdul El-Sayed with fearmongering about Paris protests
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Republican Senate candidate JD Vance used a campaign stop in Howell, Michigan, to inflame xenophobic fears by falsely tying Democratic rival Abdul El-Sayed to unrest in France and hinting that he would welcome similar chaos in Detroit.
Republican Senate candidate JD Vance escalated his attacks on Democratic opponent Abdul El-Sayed during a campaign stop in Howell, Michigan, using the moment to stitch together a cynical link between El-Sayed’s politics and recent protests in Paris. Vance portrayed the French demonstrations as “hordes of masked rioters, many from distant lands, taking over historic city centers” and claimed that if similar unrest took place in the United States, “the Hasan Pikers and El-Sayed would be right there leading them and cheering them on.”
“The scene of destruction in Paris may be an ocean away, but ask yourselves: are they really so hard to imagine here in the United States of America?” Vance said.
Vance also invoked left-wing commentator Hasan Piker, whom he said was connected to El-Sayed, in another attempt to summon fear around political dissent. The remarks came as President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly used El-Sayed’s middle name Mohamed, urged Michigan voters to “stand up and fight” against the candidate.
El-Sayed answered at his own rally, saying that attacks on his name and faith are meant to distract from core concerns like the cost of gas, groceries and healthcare.
Political observers said the campaign has taken on an intensified anti-Muslim tone, with Democratic Senator Chris Murphy calling attention to what he described as a coordinated effort to delegitimize Muslim Americans.