Trump faces backlash after invoking 9/11 in verbal assault on El-Sayed

President Donald Trump is drawing criticism after using a Michigan rally on Sunday to attack Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for the state's U.S. Senate seat, as a jihadist. The remarks matter because the November 3 contest against Republican Mike Rogers is expected to be among the tightest of the midterms, and the seat, now held by Democrats, is one of a few that could determine control of Congress, according to BBC.

Trump brought on stage the father of Todd Beamer, a Michigan man among the passengers who resisted the hijackers of United Airlines Flight 93. He urged Michigan voters to fight, as Beamer did, to keep a jihadist out of the Capitol. He also alleged that El-Sayed and relatives had Muslim Brotherhood ties, and warned that a Democratic win would let in hordes of jihadis. Opponents have pointed to old writings by El-Sayed and his half-sister Eman Abdelhadi. El-Sayed denies any link to the group and said he would disavow it.

El-Sayed answered by joking that he would be Senator Mohamed to Trump, and Senator Bernie Sanders called the Islamophobia a dodge from real issues. Bishara Bahbah, who founded Arab Americans for Trump, told the Associated Press the statements were racist.

Summarized by PolitiKool from BBC’s reporting. Read the full story at BBC →