Finally, a U.S. Senate debate.
Last night, candidates Abdul El-Sayed and Mike Rogers met at WOOD-TV in Grand Rapid in a debate that might've been more efficiently conducted as a cage match. Rogers had declined to participate in a debate last month at Fox 2 Detroit, claiming bias on the part of moderator Roop Raj, which is absurd; Raj is a fair and diligent newsman. So the Oct. 8 debate at WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids, moderated by Rick Albin, was what we call "highly anticipated."
Let's dive right in.
Do voters like it when candidates interrupt each other?
First: Woof.
Rogers and El-Sayed interrupted and talked over each other, running roughshod over Albin, a strong journalist and experienced moderator. Albin consistently tried to enforce standards, but was not particularly successful.
midterms and more with Freep Opinion on Oct. 14.
Midway through, a friend texted, "Good lord, the tactic here is apparently lots of testosterone, and no adults on this stage." From the tenor of the campaign, it's not hard to surmise that these two candidates genuinely dislike each other, and that antipathy was on full display.
I'm not sure how voters respond to this sort of thing, but I don't think it's well.
Donald Trump, the political porridge Goldilocks ate
Republican candidates have a fast dance this cycle. They've got to distance themselves from President Donald Trump's waning popularity without alienating his MAGA base. For Rogers, whom Trump has endorsed, that means tepid objections in the last two weeks to tariffs and the Iran war.
With less than a month to go ‒ and absentee ballots out Sept. 24 ‒ we've hit the point of no return; Trump's not going to get more popular before Election Day.
Rogers' timing is awfully convenient.
Believe it or not, blatant lies aren't that common in campaigns
It's normal for candidates to stretch the truth about each other, but outright lies are more scarce than you'd think. El-Sayed sometimes exaggerates Rogers' positions, or presents his opponent's positions in the worst light. But Rogers consistently lies about El-Sayed, often with racist subtext that sometimes leaps up into the bright light of text. That was on full display last night.
Rogers repeatedly linked El-Sayed to terrorist groups, and low-key accused the Oakland County-born El-Sayed of secret Egyptianness. Rogers even came after El-Sayed's mother ‒ he was raised by his father and stepmother ‒ which is definitely a choice.
Most egregious, perhaps, is Rogers' repeated assertion that El-Sayed "refused to condemn" or "couldn't even condemn" the March 12 terror attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield. Here's El-Sayed's unequivocal condemnation, posted the day after the attack ‒ sorry, this is long, but I think it's important:
"Yesterday, our state was rocked by news of a heinous attack on Temple Israel, a synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan. An armed assailant drove his truck into the building where there are 140 children. Because of the heroism of Temple security and law enforcement, the assailant was disarmed and ultimately killed. No teachers, children or congregants were physically harmed. I’m so relieved. ...
"... I shuddered to think through the emotions of the parents whose children were in the synagogue. This attack will leave scars on the inside. That’ll stay with the community for decades. These scars, they’ll echo centuries of trauma on the part of the Jewish people, calling back the memories of atrocities, including the Holocaust against Jewish people, that are torn afresh every time something like this happens. ... To my Jewish sisters and brothers, I want to reaffirm my commitment to your rights to worship, to learn, to practice and to celebrate your faith. Antisemitism has no place in our communities. Ever. Full stop.
"Yesterday, we also learned that the attacker was Ayman Ghazali. He was Arab American and Muslim. I condemn what he did. There is never a justification for attacking innocent people or houses of worship. Never."
Where's Hasan?
Republicans have had a field day with El-Sayed's association with controversial Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, who has said outrageous things about 9/11 and made antisemitic comments. El-Sayed has disavowed Piker's most shocking remarks, and confines his own Israel discourse to condemning its military onslaught on Gaza ‒ which he calls a genocide ‒ and calling for an end to U.S. aid to Israel, along with other states like Egypt that don't follow international law.
Republicans talk about Piker a lot. Rogers habitually refers to Piker as El-Sayed's "running mate." But not Thursday night. After the debate, another friend texted: "Rogers did not mention Hasan Piker. It must not be testing well."
He's a doctor. Get over it.
It's far from the most important point in this election, but I'm really tired of the "is Abdul a doctor???" debate. El-Sayed earned an M.D. from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and a D.Phil (what the Brits call a Ph.D) in public health as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University.
My English professor father had a Ph.D. For 40 years, people called him "Dr. Kaffer." My therapist has a Ph.D in clinical psychology. We call her "doctor," too.
M.D. aside, folks with Ph.Ds are addressed as doctor. Because they have doctorates. This is not remarkable, and it's a stupid distraction.
And in conclusion
On Thursday afternoon, I passed a car with pro-El-Sayed sentiments scrawled on its windows. When El-Sayed came to our Detroit office last month for an endorsement interview, a worker from another company (not a Free Press staffer), bubbling with enthusiasm like she'd just seen a Beatle, stopped him at the elevators to grab a selfie.
Most reliable polls are showing El-Sayed ahead of Rogers, albeit in a fairly close race. These candidates are fighting over the voters in the middle, but I can't imagine this debate moved the needle for anyone. That lady at the elevator surely believes El-Sayed crushed Rogers. The Rogers camp believes the opposite: Rogers' team sent out a statement from one Republican state representative denouncing El-Sayed's performance at 5 p.m., two hours before the debate even started. (I'm withholding that name; Rogers' overeager PR team's isn't the rep's fault.)
With less than a month to go, we're at the point of the cycle when Election Day seems both shockingly close and 900 years away. I have a permanent cramp in my neck and I've given up on having dinner with my family. Send thoughts and prayers.
Nancy Kaffer is the editorial page editor of the Detroit Free Press. Contact: nkaffer@freepress.com. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters, and we may publish it in print or online.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Abdul El-Sayed and Mike Rogers debate: In a word, aggressive | Opinion
