CNN's first reactions to key Senate debates in MI, KS

[0:00] Senate candidates in Michigan and Kansas held their final debates, and loyalty was the word of the night. [0:06] In Kansas, the candidates had to answer the question, where do their loyalties lie? [0:10] For the Republicans, it is with Donald Trump. [0:13] And for the Democrat, Chuck Schumer? [0:17] We've heard Chuck Schumer mentioned, I don't know, 50 times? [0:20] Maybe I'm going to exaggerate, maybe 20 times so far. [0:22] I find that interesting. [0:23] I've already said I wouldn't support Chuck Schumer for the Senate Majority Leader if the Democrats to control the Senate. [0:28] President Trump is not always right, but I do think that it's great that I have a relationship, [0:33] that I can pick up the phone and discuss with him the pros and cons of what he's contemplating. [0:39] Meanwhile, in Michigan, you had Abdul El-Sayed once again questioned about his allegiances. [0:46] If you are going to go to the United States Senate, we need to know, are you for America or are you for these terrorist groups overseas? [0:54] You can grin and you can smile and you can talk real pretty, but I'm going to tell you what, [0:59] that is a risk to our national security. [1:02] To bring into question my commitment to the Constitution is really beneath you. [1:07] I am proud of America. [1:09] I'm proud to be an American. [1:10] I'm proud of our Constitution that guarantees all of us the right to pray as we choose to pray. [1:14] And the question that you would ask that I think is actually really quite shameful. [1:18] I want to begin with you, Niamalika, because you see this, this conversation about loyalty to the Constitution that Rogers went right into. [1:26] Is that sort of attack and question going to resonate in a place like Michigan now? [1:32] Yes, it will. [1:34] It will absolutely resonate. [1:35] We have seen this playbook before, and it's why they're using it. [1:40] You know, if you look at some of the polling in Michigan, the Washington Post had a poll in September, 45% of people in Michigan said they would not vote for a Muslim president, right? [1:51] That is evidence of Islamophobia, and that is why you see Mike Rogers there stoking some of that fear. [1:59] It is terrible for our body politic that he is doing that. [2:03] It would be much better, I think, for the country, for this race, if he was focusing on the issues. [2:09] But the issue set in Michigan is terrible for Republicans. [2:13] You think about tariffs, particularly on Canada. [2:16] You think about high grocery prices. [2:19] You've seen Mike Rogers have to walk away from this president on all of these issues, on the war, as well as tariffs, because it's such a terrible issue set. [2:26] So there he is, really, I think, going to the bottom of the barrel with these stereotypes about people of the Muslim faith. [2:35] And the other thing is, one of the things you think about Michigan, there are about 200,000 Muslim American voters there, right? [2:43] They are energized in this race, so in that way it will backfire, but it will also stoke some fear and cause people pause when thinking about voting for AES. [2:54] Well, if the issues are so bad, obviously, for Republicans in a place like Michigan, you have to wonder, even going to this particular way that he's thinking about it, is that enough to offset the attention, the negative attention on Republicans? [3:07] Well, it's the only option right now. [3:09] I mean, obviously, Mike knows exactly what he's doing. [3:13] Mike's a very good candidate, but at the end of the day, Michigan's still a blue state. [3:16] I mean, obviously, the president's won it, but it's something that we haven't won, at least on the Senate side, for a very, very long time. [3:24] So, listen, I think it's going to be very difficult for Mike to actually pull this off. [3:30] However, the only way he can do it is by going after some of the comments that El-Sayed had. [3:35] It's not just the fact that he's a Muslim. [3:37] Obviously, it's something we all should be open about, no matter what religion you have. [3:43] However, he has said some pretty significant things, especially around 9-11, sympathizing with the terrorists. [3:50] And so, it's just beyond, like, his Muslim religion. [3:53] And, like, we can't pretend that it's not. [3:56] Elections are about coalitions. [3:58] Both candidates need to solidify their base and then add on to that the politically unhoused, politically homeless. [4:08] Hold on, I have a problem with your mic. [4:09] I can't hear you as well as I need to for our audience. [4:11] So, I want to come right back to you, but I want everyone to hear what you have to say. [4:14] It's very important, Antoine. [4:15] I want to go to you in the meantime, and we'll come back when your microphone's fixed. [4:17] Thank you. [4:18] Well, when I hear all this, I'm reminded of both John McCain and George W. Bush, particularly 9-11, after he came out and said, [4:26] don't paint a broad brush on the Muslim religion. [4:29] And this Islamophobia that's going on right now, it's just like if you have an Islamic name, you're terrorist. [4:34] That's sort of the broad brush that's being painted. [4:36] So, I think Abdul El-Sayed is fighting against that. [4:39] Yes, I think there's some problematic things that he's said, but I think he's being tarred with this broad brush. [4:44] I think he's an exceptional candidate fighting against that Islamophobia, which is a very real thing. [4:51] And I think, Roger, I think this is a really tight race, probably the tightest Senate race in the country, and may decide the Senate race. [4:57] Look, I think that elections are about coalitions. [5:02] The base is a key component in a midterm election. [5:06] Abdul had a base problem in his election. [5:10] He needed to strengthen his African-American coalition. [5:14] He needed to bring over some Jewish voters. [5:16] And now he needs to bring in the politically unhoused, politically homeless, independent thinkers, and some Republicans. [5:23] On the other hand, on the other hand, Rogers needs to be able to put together a strong Republican coalition outside of the MAGA movement [5:32] and convince some independent thinkers, independent voters, and those who are floating to come under his tent. [5:38] The problem is, he cannot win on bread and butter issues, so they then have to turn to extremism, racism, divisive issues that have been central tenets to the MAGA movement. [5:51] I think that's exactly right. [5:52] And the thing that's really unique about this Senate race, apart from the others, is the unique coalition constituencies that they're both having to cobble together, just as you said. [6:01] Yeah, and Mike's, sorry, Mike's a very, Mike's a law and order candidate. [6:05] That's his background. [6:06] I mean, and he, the fact that he came out against the Iran war, I mean, that goes back to his fundamental, what we believe in, or believed in as Republicans in regards to making sure that America's safe. [6:18] So he has, he is not having the same talking points as some of the other Republicans you see. [6:24] So I want to start with you, because we were talking just before the show started about Abdul El-Sayed having to deal with these questioning of his allegiances, specifically as a Muslim, saying that he's connected to the Muslim Brotherhood, all of this stuff. [6:39] And it's funny, 25 years after 9-11, for the first Muslim American to be trying to sort of win a Senate seat, I actually find this whole line of questioning not surprising. [6:49] I find it not surprising, but I am, if I'm honest, if, like, in my core, I think, oh, wow, this is an issue. [6:57] And I do believe that it's starting to penetrate. [6:59] I mentioned to you before the show what we were talking about. [7:02] A friend of ours interviewed him in Detroit. [7:04] And people know in Detroit his relationship or what black people think of him is not necessarily great because of the relationships and the tensions that exist in that community between the Arabs and the black community. [7:16] The fact that people are asking him this, and you may have seen that viral video, he said, it's an assumption. [7:22] When I walk in a room, that is the assumption, that I am not for America by looking at me, something that a lot of marginalized people, black people, women can relate to. [7:32] And so I found it very interesting, because if I thought about it, I said, I could see this penetrating. [7:37] I see people hesitating, but not so much because of just our thoughts, our confirmation bias, but more importantly, I do believe it's the way he's responding to it. [7:48] People want it to be a little more full-throated. [7:51] Yeah. [7:51] Also, if you're stuck responding to it, you don't get to talk about what your opponent is doing. [7:56] And it seems like he's sort of trapped in that vortex of, like, trying to point things out, but not getting there and having to defend. [8:04] Here's an example of Mike Rogers having to walk a fine line when it comes to Trump's tariffs. [8:08] So just give an example. [8:12] I think it's a mixed bag. [8:13] But here's what I will tell you. [8:15] The reshoring of manufacturing is underway. [8:18] I completely support that. [8:20] Some of these small fabrication shops adding second shifts and or third shifts for the first time in decades, those are a positive development for the great state of Michigan. [8:30] I have stepped back and said maybe these Canadian tariffs were not well thought through, mainly because of the interaction between our automobile companies in Canada when it comes just in time manufacturing. [8:42] It doesn't really sound like Mike Rogers can and should spend a lot of time talking about this. [8:47] Like, he's not saying these tariffs have been great. [8:50] No. [8:50] He's not saying this Trump policy has been great, right? [8:52] Like, we're pretty much focused on the other candidate at this point. [8:56] Well, and that's a position of strength for Mike Rogers. [9:00] I mean, if your opponent is defending himself the whole time and that's where the debate is, and you're able to then put forward in that clip that you just showed, I mean, talking about manufacturing jobs, talking about an economy that's getting better, that is a good place for Mike Rogers. [9:17] I don't think so, though, actually, you don't have to talk about the $5,000 that the tariffs have cost to American people because people are feeling that. [9:33] The problem is, is that people feel this economy. [9:37] People feel, what they're not feeling is that, oh, this small shop's opening up a second and third shift. [9:42] If people felt that way, if that was a general consensus among the American people, we would not be having these conversations right now. [9:48] The feeling is this economy stinks, the way we're going forward stinks. [9:51] And the fact is, Abdul has stuck to his guns. [9:54] He has said, hey, what I want to do is get money out of politics, put it in your pocket, pass Medicare for all. [9:59] He stayed on the next year. [10:00] So what's your response to the people? [10:01] But it's not, well, I mean, just briefly, it's just not coming through. [10:04] Oh, I think it's coming through. [10:05] Oh, I don't. [10:06] I think he's, oh, I don't. [10:08] Well, I'll show the polling for a second so you guys don't have to debate via vibes. [10:12] Right now, it's within, it's okay, it's within margin of error, okay, 49% to 47%, it is close. [10:20] I want to turn to something else that's close because I didn't expect it. [10:23] I want more vibes, audience. [10:24] More vibes. [10:25] I have some for you. [10:26] What's the matter with Kansas, as they used to say? [10:30] Here's an example of what's going on there. [10:33] There is a conversation happening about immigration and ice raids, which happened on some grain-fed [10:40] sort of beef plants in the last couple of months. [10:44] So the candidates have actually had to go back and forth about it. [10:47] Here's an example. [10:50] The first thing I did when I saw what was going on in southwest Kansas, I picked up the phone, [10:55] called Secretary Mark Wayne Mullen and said, hey, I don't think this is quite right. [10:59] What's going on? [10:59] We've militarized and politicized ice as opposed to them doing the important job they're supposed [11:04] to do, and that is protecting Americans from dangerous people. [11:07] This is really harming people in the livestock industry, the dairy industry, [11:11] and it doesn't reflect who we are as Americans. [11:15] I thought it was curious. [11:16] The very first answer you hear is someone saying, I picked up the phone and I was mad at ice. [11:19] Is the Republican in the race? [11:21] Yeah. [11:22] I mean, that's what's happening in communities, though. [11:24] Where I live right now, there's a big fabric of my community that is Hispanic, that are immigrants, [11:29] and a lot of those folks are afraid to go to work. [11:31] They're afraid to drive to Walmart. [11:32] They're afraid to go to the grocery store. [11:34] They're afraid to drive their kids to school. [11:36] Why? [11:36] Because they're afraid that ice. [11:37] But I expect you to say that. [11:38] I don't expect an ally of Trump to say that. [11:40] Oh, I do. [11:41] People are feeling it. [11:41] I do. [11:41] And here's why. [11:43] Okay, go on. [11:43] Because you've got, you know, whatever happens in these midterms, we've got two more years [11:47] of the Trump administration. [11:49] You're in a ruby red state, and you've got a senator who says that I can pick up the phone, [11:54] call the White House, and get change done. [11:57] So the phone pickup is the part of the story. [11:58] The phone pickup is exactly part of the story that you should be focused on.