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Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed was grilled in a fiery interview on “Jesse Watters Primetime” Monday on his progressive policy positions as he sparred over his high-stakes Senate race against former Republican congressman Mike Rogers.
El-Sayed was challenged over his stated adherence to Sharia law, which was recently criticized by Vice President JD Vance, as well as previous remarks in which he linked efforts to eliminate Sharia law to White supremacy.
“Nobody is trying to push Sharia law on anyone else, just like I hope nobody is trying to push Canon law on anybody else, because we live in an America where you should have the freedom of your religion,” he told host Jesse Watters.
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Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed joined “Jesse Watters Primetime” on Monday. ()
El-Sayed, who said he would “never” push his faith on someone else, argued that there is evidence proving the Trump administration has targeted him because he is Muslim.
“There’s statistical evidence that the president and the vice president like to target me simply as a function of my faith,” he said.
The Democratic nominee condemned Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., over his proposed legislation that would prevent foreign nationals advocating for Sharia law from entering the U.S., including the No Sharia Act and Preserving a Sharia Free America Act.
“The idea, that you have somebody like Tommy Tuberville – who barely was good at coaching football – is out here trying to ban Sharia Law when there’s less than 1% of the Muslim community in America, as if somehow Muslims are out here trying to push Sharia law, that seems to me to be deliberately targeting the Muslim Community, because they’re different,” he said.
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Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed poses for a portrait in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (Evan Cobb for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
El-Sayed and Watters later clashed over the Democratic nominee’s proposal to raise taxes on the wealthy.
“I also think we got to start taxing wealth for people who know have over $100 million. I mean at that point like what are gonna even do with more money?,” El-Sayed said Wednesday on “The Ansari Podcast.”
“What are you going to do with more money? Whatever I want!” Watters said in response to El-Sayed’s podcast remarks.
El-Sayed, who has repeatedly railed against “the 1%” as a malign influence on American politics, defended his tax-the-wealthy stance, arguing it is aimed at improving the lives of average Americans, including in infrastructure and education.
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“The question ultimately is, ‘Do you want to drive on good roads, or would you rather have a billionaire make a second billion?’ That’s what Mike Rogers wants. That’s why Donald Trump wants. Apparently, that’s what you want. I think the people in Michigan want something different,” he said.
Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive candidate in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Michigan, films a social media video at a pool party for content creators supporting his campaign, Monday, Aug. 3, 2026, in Detroit. AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
While El-Sayed has repeatedly criticized the influence of wealthy Americans on the campaign trail, he and his wife reported $686,069 in income in 2025, placing their household among Michigan’s top earners.
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El-Sayed accused Watters of “defending billionaires,” to which the host responded, “No, I just think I have the right to the fruits of my own labor. That’s America. It’s not communist what you’re talking about.”
El-Sayed countered that billionaires would remain financially secure even if they faced higher taxes.
“If we tax you at 7%, you’re still going to make what? A cool $30 million off your billion dollars? I think that’s okay, they’re going to be okay, Jesse,” he said.
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El-Sayed also took aim at Rogers, calling his opponent in Michigan’s Senate race a “beta” male who “thinks he is running against Hasan Piker.”
He accused Rogers of dodging interviews, though El-Sayed himself seemed to dodge questions during his “Jesse Watters Primetime” appearance about men in women’s sports and him previous characterization of the NFL as racist.
The Democratic Senate candidate also argued that considering reparations for Black Americans “shouldn’t be a crazy thing” and that the U.S. shouldn’t be fighting wars “we don’t know how to get out of,” referencing the Iran conflict.
