Michigan Senate candidate dodges question on defunding police
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed faces scrutiny over past statements concerning defunding the police during a CNN interview. Instead of directly addressing the ‘defund’ terminology, El-Sayed advocates for increased investment in libraries, public services and social services. The interview clip resurfaced, prompting reactions from Harris Faulkner and Lara Trump about his evasive response.
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Democratic Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed took a swipe at CNN over what he suggests are uncomfortable appearances he has had on the network.
“I go on CNN every once in a while and I get a non-consensual colonoscopy,” El-Sayed quipped at a rally in Grand Rapids on Sunday, sparking laughs from the crowd.
“And then, all they ask me about is another country, and they’re like, ‘All he’s ever talking about is another country.’ No! I just want everybody to understand that there’s an opportunity cost to the money being sent over there, and that is what we could have over here,” he continued.
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Democratic Michigan Senate Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed equated his recent CNN appearances to a “non-consensual colonoscopy.” (Sarah Rice/Getty Images)
CNN did not immediately respond to Digital’s request for comment.
Earlier in the day, El-Sayed appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union,” where he was grilled by anchor Jake Tapper about previously-leaked audio of him saying he didn’t want to comment on the killing of Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February in order not to offend any of his constituents.
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“Why were you worried about people who supported the ayatollah?” Tapper asked.
El-Sayed largely sidestepped the question, insisting he didn’t want to comment because of the “ridiculous pretext,” instead putting focus on the three U.S. servicemembers who were killed by Iranian strikes in Jordan over the weekend.
El-Sayed is rallying massive progressive support in Michigan’s Senate race. (AP Photo/Kristen Norman)
“Look, let’s have a conversation based in Michigan. I’m running for Senate in Michigan. And I think here in Michigan, all of us are probably sad about the fact that we went to a war that we never should have fought. I’d rather our money be spent here,” El-Sayed told Tapper.
“I was specifically asking you about comments you didn’t want to make because you didn’t want to offend people in Dearborn, which is in Michigan,” Tapper replied before moving on to another topic.
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Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York, from left, Abdul El-Sayed, U.S. Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, on stage during the “The People v. The Powerful” campaign event at the Detroit Opera House in Detroit, Michigan, on Saturday, July 18, 2026. (Nic Antaya/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
In another contentious exchange earlier this month, El-Sayed clashed with CNN anchor Kasie Hunt about his deleted social media posts expressing support for defunding the police, accusing the network of seeking “clickbait” instead of focusing on the issues voters care about.
El-Sayed, who has earned the endorsement of far-left progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is currently running in a combative Democratic primary against Michigan Rep. Haley Stevens. Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez joined him at Sunday’s campaign rally.
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