‘I Reject That Framing’: MS NOW’s Katy Tur Pushes Back on Abdul El-Sayed Downplaying Hasan Piker Connection

MS NOW’s Katy Tur rejected U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed’s (D) argument that the media has made a mountain out of the molehill that is his relationship with controversial streamer Hasan Piker.

Piker has campaigned with El-Sayed in Michigan, but may have gone too far this week when he suggested that American Jews were “making antisemitism worse” by supporting Israel.

El-Sayed joined other Democrats in denouncing Piker, saying, “antisemitism is a scourge, and we need to address it in all its forms.”

On Friday’s The Moment with Katy Tur, the host said, “It’s emotional, just as it was emotional in 2024 when Arab Americans stayed home and did not vote for Kamala Harris because of the war in Gaza and cost her, arguably the state of Michigan. Even though Democrats were arguing Donald Trump is going to be a whole lot worse. And he has been in many ways.”

Tur continued, “So, if you have Jewish voters in Michigan — I’ll say [Attorney General] Dana Nessel is one of them — who are worried about your association with Hasan Piker. Why? Why keep him so close? Or why not fully disassociate yourself with him, especially when Michigan is so tight? Elissa Slotkin only won by 22,000 votes.”

El-Sayed first made clear that he endorsed Harris even though he didn’t agree with the Biden administration’s position on Gaza. He then addressed the Piker situation.

“This campaign is not about a streamer in California. This campaign is about affordability in Michigan. This campaign is about the ability to have health care,” El-Sayed said.

“The ‘streamer in California’ does campaign with a lot of Democrats. So he’s not just a streamer,” Tur argued.

“This campaign is about the challenges Michiganders face,” El-Sayed continued. “And I get that, in the media, it’s a lot easier to pick up one person and be like, ‘This is what this is about.’ But this is why a lot of people get so frustrated about politics and political media, because it doesn’t actually speak to the challenges they face.”

“It’s not just the media, and I reject that framing,” Tur interjected. “It’s — six in 10 Americans don’t know who he is, and I’m not saying he’s the most important person in the world, but when you have a state like Michigan, where, again, Elissa Slotkin only won by 22,000 votes, is it worth potentially losing the few votes you need to win?”

“Ten in 10 Americans agree that they can’t afford the things that they need in their lives,” El-Sayed clapped back. “So, if folks want to make this about a streamer in California, they’re welcome to do that. But I’m focused on Donald Trump. I’m focused on addressing the affordability crisis. I’m focused on getting you health care. And that’s what I’m gonna stay focused on.”

Watch the report above via MS NOW.

Jason Cohen contributed to this report.

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