Is Abdul El-Sayed Bigger Than Mamdani? - with Mark Halperin
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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Tens of millions of Americans and millions in Michigan don't want the status quo because like Trump supporters in 2015 and 2016, they're for anybody who will roll into Washington with sticks of dynamite on their calves, ready to blow the place up and start over. That's what this guy is promising. Let's see if he can win the general election. But if he does, he could be the presidential nominee. He could be the kingmaker because he's not interested in business as usual. And he's got a real hunger to lead a revolution.
It's 7.30 a.m. on Sunday, August 2nd in New York City. It's 2.30 p.m. on Sunday, August 2nd in Israel. On this podcast, we spend a lot of time on what may be Israel's most consequential election in its history, the one set for October 27th of this year. But there's another election. 6,100 miles away in Michigan. That could matter just as much for the U.S.-Israel relationship. The Michigan Democratic primary to nominate their candidate for U.S. Senate, which takes place this coming Tuesday. On the surface, the races between Congresswoman Haley Stevens, characterized as the candidate of the party's moderate wing, and Abdul Al-Sayed, characterized as the candidate of the party's insurgent progressive wing.
I have some personal history here. I worked for the last Arab American elected to the U.S. Senate from Michigan in the 1990s. And I have had a lot of exposure to the large and vibrant Arab American community in the state and its role in statewide politics. But unlike the race I worked on back in the 90s, Israel has been anything but a subplot in this campaign. El-Sayed has made it the plot. For those who have not followed Abdullah al-Sayed, he has made this race a referendum on Israel and AIPAC. As point blank, if a progressive could also be a Zionist, he said, "...every definition of a Jewish state ends up in some articulation of illiberal values, every single one." Like Mamdani, he doesn't accept Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state.
And also, like Mamdani, al-Sayed sees the office as a vessel for something much bigger than Michigan. Leaked audio from a donor call had him describing a Senate seat as a platform to build the progressive movement nationally and bankroll primary challenges against sitting Democratic senators. On that call, reportedly saying of Senator John Fetterman, quote, you put one ogre on a pike and then everyone else gets the message, close quote. His own primary opponent's campaign has accused Al-Sayed of making this race, quote, about his personal political ambitions and the other 49 states. I believe that if al-Sayed continues to rise, he will be a larger force than Mayor Mamdani for three reasons. One, he can actually run for president or join a ticket as vice president.
And there would be a logical political rationale for it among Democrats. Two, like Mamdani, who has an outsized platform and bully pulpit, a U.S. senator can actually have all that. Plus, unlike Mamdani, a very practical hands-on role in U.S. foreign policy. Just look at Lindsey Graham's story or the John McCain model in terms of how a U.S. senator can change the course of U.S. foreign policy. And three, Michigan will play an important role in the Democrats' presidential nominating process in 2028. Could El-Sayed become kingmaker in the state? If Abdul El-Sayed wins Tuesday and then wins the general election in November, he would become the most fervently anti-Zionist member of the United States Senate, elected not from a deep blue city, but from a state Donald Trump carried twice.
He will instantly attract the kind of attention that Mamdani did when he took office last year, or approaching, perhaps, Illinois Senate candidate Barack Obama. when he was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004. The persona, the agenda, and the story are all much bigger than representing a Midwestern state in the U.S.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–6:51
2
Why does the Michigan Democratic Senate primary matter for U.S.-Israel policy?
6:51–10:59
3
How did Abdul El‑Sayed turn Israel and AIPAC into the central issue of his campaign?
10:59–49:26
4
What structural changes in the Democratic coalition explain rising anti‑Israel sentiment?
49:26–54:48
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