'Here To Keep A Jihadist Out': Trump Attacks Muslim Senate Candidate El-Sayed At Michigan Rally

(MENAFN- Live Mint) US President Donald Trump escalated his rhetoric against US Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed during a Sunday rally, comparing him to the 9/11 attackers in an attempt to link him to Muslim extremists.

He also alleged that the Democratic Party would open the country's doors to violent, anti-American terrorists.

Michigan has one of the nation's most competitive US Senate races heading into the November 3 midterm elections, with former US Representative Mike Rogers, a Republican, and El-Sayed vying for an open seat that will help determine control of the chamber.

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“I'm here to keep a jihadist, Muslim Brotherhood member from becoming a United States senator,” the president told a receptive audience in Port Huron, which is in a Michigan area where 66% of the vote went to Trump in the 2024 presidential election.

If El-Sayed wins, he would be the first Muslim elected to the US Senate.

Seeking to paint El-Sayed as an anti-American Muslim radical, Trump took the rhetoric to a new level, likening him to the attackers who took over United Flight 93 during the 11 September 2001 attacks.

Trump also compared voting against El-Sayed to the actions of Michigan native Todd Beamer and others who fought back against the Flight 93 hijackers.

"Twenty-five years later, Michigan needs to stand up and fight, just like Todd did, to stop a jihadist from walking into the Capitol," Trump said.

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El-Sayed has dismissed the accusations against him and, in a recent advertisement, defended his religion, saying,“Faith is a thing there's just too little of in Washington.”

The mostly White crowd at Sunday's rally cheered Trump's comments on El-Sayed. Some attendees yelled“traitor” and others yelled“deport,” although El-Sayed was born in Michigan.

Earlier on Sunday, he said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he did not agree with the notion that El-Sayed is a violent terrorist. "I've never called him a terrorist," Rogers told NBC.

Rogers has alleged without evidence that El-Sayed has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the Arab world's oldest and most influential Islamist groups.

Also Read | Donald Trump said to consider ex-Congressman Mike Rogers for FBI director

El-Sayed has denied affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood, saying it is "shameful" for Rogers to question his allegiance to the United States.

Rogers told "Meet the Press" that El-Sayed had not sufficiently responded to questions about the allegations.

"He's a Democrat Socialist of America-aligned candidate who has these pretty radical support groups that don't like America," he said.

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