Sen. Bernie Sanders says GOP rhetoric about Abdul El-Sayed “should appall every decent American”

November 1, 2026 / 3:50 PM EST / CBS News

Washington — Sen. Bernie Sanders decried some of the rhetoric from Republicans in the Michigan Senate race, as the GOP has leaned in heavily on attacks on Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed's ethnicity and religion.

"That level of racism, overt absolute racism, is frankly disgusting and should appall every decent American," Sanders said on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan."

Sanders, who's supported El-Sayed's campaign, specifically referred to comments made by Republican surrogates, including President Trump and GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Republicans have called El-Sayed a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood, and implied that electing him could even be deadly to Americans. El-Sayed, who would be the first Muslim senator, has denied any connection to the Muslim Brotherhood and condemned the comments. The Trump administration earlier this year designated certain chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist groups.

Sanders said, "What Cruz and Trump and Vance and others are saying is disgusting."

"The fact of the matter is that Abdul is running an extraordinary campaign, and I think what you're going to see is a good victory in Michigan form," Sanders said. "People will rebel against that type of…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/entertainment/