Rogers Tells NBC He Never Called El Sayed a Terrorist, Distances Himself From Trump's Jihadist Remark

Michigan Republican Senate nominee Mike Rogers said on NBC on Sunday that he has never called Democratic opponent Abdul el Sayed a terrorist, and he declined to agree with President Donald Trump's description of el Sayed as a violent jihadist. Host Kristen Welker asked whether Trump's language met his own standard, and Rogers said no. Trump made the remark to reporters on Friday and also called el Sayed a phony and a liar for presenting himself as a centrist. Welker's questions drew on Rogers's earlier statements. On Oct. 10 he said Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy was exactly right to call el Sayed a terrorist. After the August primary he put out a statement saying el Sayed pledged support to the Muslim Brotherhood, four branches of which the United States has designated terrorist organizations. Rogers did agree that el Sayed is further left than he admits, calling him a Democratic Socialists of America-aligned candidate with radical backers. The two face each other in November.

Left-leaning Raw Story headlines the NBC exchange as Rogers stumbling and flailing while Welker threw his own words back at him. The text collected from it was only an author biography, so no further detail is available. Right-leaning outlets split. The Washington Examiner also covers the Welker interview, but frames it as a break with Trump and lays out the Oct. 10 and post-primary statements. Breitbart leads with an exclusive Saturday interview in which Rogers cites a 2012 el Sayed letter about Egypt's Mohamed Morsi, el Sayed's past role in the University of Michigan Muslim Student Association, and Muslim Brotherhood praise of the primary win. It does not mention Trump or Welker in the portion collected. Both sides' coverage centers on Rogers and el Sayed. Alternative and independent outlets had not reported the story at the time of writing, while left-leaning and right-leaning outlets had.