Fact Check: Did Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed say America deserved 9/11?
LANSING, MICHIGAN: Before the Michigan Senate Primary election, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms claiming that the state’s Senate Democratic candidate, Abdul El-Sayed, said that he believed the United States deserved the 9/11 attacks. The claim has sparked panic and concerns among social media users, prompting a verification.
Claim: Abdul El-Sayed said that he believed America deserved 9/11
According to the viral rumor, Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan’s Democratic nominee for the Senate, said that he believed America deserved 9/11, which destroyed the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.
The claim partly came from Mike Rogers, El-Sayed’s Republican opponent in the state’s Senate race.
Rogers posted on his Instagram and X accounts, stating, “Never in a million years did I think that I would be running against someone who believes America deserved 9/11."
The posts have collectively garnered more than a million views, with the comments under them suggesting that many believe the claim to be real. In contrast, others dismissed it as misinformation and slammed the Republican opponent for spreading fake news to win elections.
Fact Check: The remark is falsely attributed to Abdul El-Sayed
However, the claim is false, as there is no evidence that El-Sayed said that he believed America deserved the 9/11 attacks.
Also, the remark amplified by Rogers and other conservative accounts against the Democrat is attributed to far-left Twitch live-streamer Hasan Piker, who campaigned for El-Sayed. Piker did say these words in August 2019 while streaming on his personal Twitch channel.
"America deserved 9/11, dude," Piker said. "F*** it. I'm saying it."
Piker later addressed and tried to provide some context for his statement when asked about it.
“No. Obviously not.” He said. Piker went on to explain, “Especially because…well...that is a very viral quote that is going around currently."
"If those people were at least even remotely charitable or cared about the actual truth of what I was talking about they would understand that within context, I was simply referencing the fact that all of the foreign policy decisions, and our arming of insurgent groups in the region, and our efforts in destabilizing the Middle East have a direct consequence — a boomerang effect rather, if you will — in in causing 9/11. Of course, every part of what I advocate for is against violence. I abhor violence. I think it's awful.”
