NRSC says El-Sayed refused to disavow Piker's 9/11 remark
National Republican Senatorial CommitteeOfficial press release of the National Republican Senatorial Committee
The National Republican Senatorial Committee said in a press release that Abdul El-Sayed refused to disavow Hasan Piker's remark that America deserved 9/11 and campaigned with Piker numerous times.
“When Hasan Piker said that ‘America deserved 9/11’, Abdul refused to disavow it and campaigned with Piker numerous times”
Official statement
Analysis
Where this statement fits
Mike Rogers’s 9/11 accusation against Abdul El-Sayed
After Michigan’s August 2026 Senate primary, Mike Rogers asserted that Abdul El-Sayed believed America deserved the September 11 attacks. His campaign defended that accusation by citing El-Sayed’s association with Hasan Piker and reluctance to disavow him. El-Sayed had explicitly rejected justifying 9/11 and argued that appearing with a person did not imply agreement. He described Rogers’s attacks as an effort to divide voters through Islamophobia. Pod Save America hosts Jon Favreau and Dan Pfeiffer later debated the strategy and construction of a related Republican ad without endorsing its factual claims.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Press release published on the National Republican Senatorial Committee's website. It says El-Sayed refused to disavow Piker's 9/11 remark and a later Piker remark about American Jews and Israel.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Analysis
About this source
FactCheck.org article documenting that El-Sayed rejected Piker's 9/11 remark when asked directly, while quoting his April 7 refusal to offer a general disavowal of Piker's views and his August 5 CNN answer declining to renounce Piker. Updated August 11 with the Rogers campaign's response.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
According to FactCheck.org, El-Sayed said on NBC's Meet the Press on Aug. 9 that Piker's 2019 remark was "a dumb statement" and that "America didn't deserve 9/11." FactCheck.org also reported that the Rogers campaign told PolitiFact its 9/11 claim was based on a video of El-Sayed declining to disavow Piker's comments.
After the quotation
The release then turned to a more recent Piker remark, that American Jews who support Israel will be targeted because of it, and said El-Sayed again refused to disavow Piker.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case's reference point is Rogers's accusation that El-Sayed believes America deserved the September 11 attacks, which his campaign backed by pointing to El-Sayed's refusal to disavow Hasan Piker. The NRSC repeats that basis, saying El-Sayed refused to disavow Piker's 9/11 remark. It supports the accusation's rationale rather than questioning it, so we labeled it Defended or excused.
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- People and groups discussed
- Abdul El-Sayed
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- NRSC says El-Sayed refused to disavow Piker's 9/11 remark
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The Dispute Index. "NRSC says El-Sayed refused to disavow Piker's 9/11 remark". First published: 2026-09-26. Last updated: 2026-09-26. https://disputeindex.com/events/2788-the-national-republican-senatorial-committee-said-in-a