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Trump calls Michigan Senate nominee El-Sayed "100%" a "Muslim Brotherhood guy"

At a White House Rose Garden lunch, President Trump called Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed a "Muslim Brotherhood guy." El-Sayed has denied any ties to the group.

3 outlets · 0L · 1C · 2R First reported Account updated

Updated (version 2). New coverage since the last version from The National.

Image: Washington Examiner
Image: The National
Image: Fox News

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The story, neutrally told

Right · 2President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed is "100%" a "Muslim Brotherhood guy." Right · 1He spoke at a Rose Garden lunch for law enforcement officials, while previewing an upcoming trip to Michigan to support Republican nominee Mike Rogers, El-Sayed's opponent. Right · 1Trump also asked, "How about having him be on the Senate Intelligence Committee?", and called El-Sayed "a fraud" and "a con man." He said he looked forward to visiting Michigan to "expose this fraud that's running."

Centre · 1The National reported that Trump also repeatedly called El-Sayed "Mohammed", saying "I call him Mohammed Al Fayed. His name is Abdul, but I think I call him Mohammed Abdul El-Sayed, and he's a Muslim Brotherhood guy, 100 per cent." Right · 1Republicans have scrutinised El-Sayed over 2012 social media posts by his half-sister, Eman Abdelhadi, who wrote that their mother was active in the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt in the early 1970s and that "My family has long been MB." Right · 1El-Sayed has denied any family connection to the group, telling NBC's Meet the Press, "I have no ties; we have no ties." He has accused opponents of anti-Muslim rhetoric, saying Rogers' strategy is to point to his name and faith and say he is different.

Centre · 1The National added that El-Sayed, the son of Egyptian immigrants, said his parents divorced when he was a child and that he was raised by his American stepmother, and called the allegation "hearsay evidence from a tweet." Right · 1Fox News Digital said it had asked El-Sayed's campaign for comment on Trump's remarks. Centre · 1The National said the remarks came less than three weeks before the 3 November midterms, that polls show El-Sayed narrowly ahead of Rogers, and that he would be the first Muslim elected to the US Senate if he won.

Centre · 1At a debate last week, Rogers called El-Sayed a "con man" and said "He can't condemn Hamas. He can't condemn the Muslim Brotherhood. He says his home is Egypt"; El-Sayed told him to "Go ahead and say it" when Rogers hinted at family terrorism suspicion.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.

Left0 outlets

No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.

Centre1 outlet

Framing
The National, a Middle East outlet, frames it as an accusation El-Sayed denies, set in a tight battleground race and a pattern of Trump insults.
Emphasis
Trump's repeated "Mohammed" remark, the Arab American and first-Muslim-senator context, polls, and El-Sayed's denial.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not quote Trump's "con man" or Senate Intelligence Committee remarks or the half-sister's 2012 post wording.
Charged language
“Islamophobic insults”“jihadist lunatic”
For example
“Throughout the campaign, Mr Trump has referred to Mr El-Sayed as a radical and a “jihadist lunatic”, among other Islamophobic insults.” — The National
“a claim the Democrat denies” — The National

Right2 outlets

Framing
Both outlets lead with Trump's quote. Fox News adds the half-sister's posts and El-Sayed's denial as background, and its headline carries Trump's "con man" line.
Emphasis
Trump's words and the Republican scrutiny of El-Sayed's family; Fox includes the 2012 posts.
Leaves out or plays down
Neither has an El-Sayed campaign response to Trump's remarks. Neither includes an independent check of the claims about his mother, nor Trump's "Mohammed" remarks.
For example
“El-Sayed has come under scrutiny from Republicans over social media posts made by his half-sister, Eman Abdelhadi” — Fox News
“President Donald Trump described Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El Sayed as a “Muslim Brotherhood guy” on Thursday.” — Washington Examiner

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