Abdul El-Sayed Says Donald Trump 'Can Read the Tea Leaves' After Defeat

Michigan Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed said in an interview on Thursday that Donald Trump has long been seen as unbeatable, arguing that "you just stand up to him and he can read the tea leaves."

The Democrat, who defeated former Republican Representative Mike Rogers on Tuesday, was asked whether he believed Trump's post-election signals of bipartisanship. He did not say he did. He said Trump had been seen as unbeatable, offered to work with him on a list of progressive priorities and rejected what he called a politics of "retribution."

El-Sayed on Trump After the Midterms

"It's funny what happens when you stand up to people and you beat them," El-Sayed said in the clip. "And I think people have always seen Donald Trump as this big monster that's unbeatable. It turns out you just stand up to him and he can read the tea leaves."

"I'm willing to work with anyone," he added, before arguing that politics is not about retribution.

"It's not about retribution. It should never be about retribution. It's about enforcing the rule of law and most importantly, delivering for the American public," he said.

El-Sayed put limits on his own role. "He is the president of the United States. He does have substantial power. I'm going to be one United States senator," he said.

What Trump Has Said About Working With Democrats

Trump spent the day after the election signaling openness to a deal while keeping a veto in reserve. "I can work with them on a lot of financial ideas that would be mutually good," he told CNBC on Wednesday, adding, "We have the veto." He said there would be no cooperation on "an open border" or "men playing in women sports."

Trump also told Politico he was ready to work with Democrats if they had good ideas, NBC News reported, and posted an image of a red cap reading "VETO" on Truth Social, while saying Democrats lack a veto-proof majority. In the same Politico interview, Trump said he "wasn't on the ballot".

He makes those overtures with a 38.2 percent approval rating, against 58.7 percent disapproval, in PolitiKool's polling average.

How Big Was El-Sayed's Win in Michigan?

The numbers support the "stand up to him" part of El-Sayed's argument. With about 97.5 percent of the expected vote counted, he led Rogers 52.5 percent to 45.5 percent, according to NBC News results. The Associated Press called the race at 2:27 a.m., Bridge Michigan reported.

Rogers's 2024 race against Elissa Slotkin was far closer; he lost that contest by roughly 20,000 votes, CBS News reported. El-Sayed, who succeeds the retiring Senator Gary Peters, will be the first Muslim elected to the Senate, according to CBS. His campaign weathered smears over his faith and his views on Israel. The race drew more than $270 million in disclosed spending as of last month, not counting additional undisclosed dark money, according to Bridge Michigan.

Nationally, Democrats were projected to hold at least 54 Senate seats and at least 250 House seats, CNBC reported.

El-Sayed's Agenda vs. Trump's

El-Sayed's offer of common ground came with a list that sits far from the White House's agenda. "So if he's interested in getting money out of politics, putting money in pockets and passing Medicare for all, that's what I ran to do," he said.

He also named "getting more people health care, ending the Medicare cuts, ending the stupid war, stopping these stupid tariffs with Canada." CBS News described the backdrop to the race as one that included "the unpopular war in Iran and high gas prices."

Medicare for All would replace the current mix of private and public insurance with a government-run single-payer system, PBS NewsHour reported. Trump has not backed it as president. Tariffs, including those on Canada, are a pillar of his economic policy. Still, Trump brought up Senator Bernie Sanders in his post-election CNBC phone interview about working with Democrats, saying the two held virtually identical views on trade, The Jerusalem Post reported, citing CNBC.

What Happens Next

El-Sayed takes office in January in a Democratic Senate. Democrats lack a veto-proof majority, so any item on the senator-elect's list would still need Trump's signature to become law.

El-Sayed also spoke about the way voters went in the election. "Clearly, they went a different way for a reason. Let's see if we can't learn from that," he said.