El-Sayed Tells Baier to "Be a Journalist" in Fiery Exchange Over 2012 Letter

El-Sayed Tells Baier to "Be a Journalist" in Fiery Exchange Over 2012 Letter

A question that never got finished

Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed clashed live on air with Fox News anchor Bret Baier when the Friday edition of "Special Report," taped near Detroit, turned to allegations of Muslim Brotherhood ties. Before Baier could finish his question about Republican Mike Rogers's attacks, El-Sayed cut in: "Bret, Bret... no, no, no... let me just stop there."

A charge of dual loyalty

El-Sayed accused Baier of asking the question to raise doubts about "whether or not I have dual loyalty." Baier pushed back, saying "I'm not, this is specific," and tried to read the Rogers campaign's accusations. El-Sayed kept interrupting, saying Baier was pulling "a ridiculous 2012 statement in a letter" out of context and questioning his allegiance. "Don't be Rogers' campaign. Be a journalist," he snapped.

An oath to the Constitution

Pressed on where his loyalty lies, El-Sayed gave a flat denial: "I have never been a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. I never will be a member of the Muslim Brotherhood." He added: "My loyalty will be to the Constitution of the United States, and as every senator who's ever served, I will swear an oath to that Constitution. I am interested in serving the United States."

The 2012 letter at the center of it all

The dispute centers on an Arabic-language statement from November 2012, first resurfaced last month by the Washington Free Beacon. Signed by El-Sayed and dozens of self-described "leaders of the Egyptian community" in the United States — reports put the number at more than 30, with one account counting 46 names — it was addressed to Egypt's newly installed president Mohamed Morsi, a Muslim Brotherhood leader. Published on Egypt's Al-Ahram Gate site, it read: "We support the revolutionary decisions taken by the president, and we call on him to purge the media and the police as quickly as possible." At the time, El-Sayed, born in Michigan to Egyptian immigrants, was a medical student at Columbia University.

Rogers says he is dodging

Rogers has made the letter a centerpiece of his closing argument. Referencing it at a debate last Wednesday, he later said El-Sayed has "been dancing around this issue for a while," arguing that calling to "purge the press and purge the police" means "he has adopted the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood." Some coverage has also cited unverified social media posts by El-Sayed's half-sister claiming family links to the movement — claims reported without supporting evidence.

A dead heat in Michigan

The exchange lands in one of the cycle's most closely watched contests: the 41-year-old former Detroit health director against the 63-year-old former congressman, for an open Michigan Senate seat in the midterms. A Marist College poll released this week had El-Sayed ahead 50 percent to 48 percent, inside a plus-or-minus 4.3-point margin of error. An Oct. 1 Mitchell Research survey had him up 45.6 percent to 41.4 percent, and the RealClearPolitics average put his edge near 2.6 points.

A final debate looms as the letter fight goes on

With the debates over and Election Day approaching, Rogers is expected to keep hammering the letter while El-Sayed tries to steer the race back to the economy and health care. The Baier interview itself has already become fresh ammunition: conservatives clip it as evasion, progressives clip it as pushback — and Michigan voters will settle which reading wins.