It started with the Abdul El-Sayed and Mike Rogers Michigan US Senate debate, where Rogers was solely interested in making the election about El-Sayed and trying to plant the idea in the minds of voters that the Democratic candidate is a terrorist.
Rogers hasn’t held town halls or the sort of big events that one would expect in one of the most high-profile Senate contests in the country. Rogers has barely held any sizable events at all. Republicans are calling this strategy “low-key,” but it is better described as invisible in a year when Republicans are unpopular and facing a bloodbath.
In contrast, NBC News reported, “El-Sayed’s campaign touted his willingness to engage directly with voters at his events, saying he has taken voter questions at 46 events following the August primary, 19 of which it described as large-scale town halls. Those questions, the campaign said, are not screened.”
Instead, the Rogers plan is to lay low and make the campaign all about smearing El-Sayed with suggestions that he is a terrorist. El-Sayed is campaigning on affordability and a better healthcare system, but Republicans are trying to paint him as a Muslim extremist.
JD Vance came to Monroe, MI, and tried to attack El-Sayed by suggesting that he is not an American.