Piker expands the argument: "our elites terrorize the entire world while ordinary americans continue to foot the bill"
Hasan PikerTwitch streamer and political commentator, posting on his verified X account
In further posts the same day, beyond the one accusing Axios of clickbaiting his answer, Piker expanded the argument behind his comparison. He said American elites terrorise the world while ordinary Americans pay for it, that trillions were spent fighting terror the United States had itself created in order to cover resource extraction, and that the result was death abroad and poverty at home alongside a growing military-industrial complex. The Washington Examiner reported he also wrote that Trump and the Republican Party are "Epstein-class terrorists" and cited strikes on fishermen off South America, arms to Israel and sanctions on Cuba. These are his characterisations and are not established here.
“our elites terrorize the entire world while ordinary americans continue to foot the bill. we spent trillions 'fighting' the terror we created to provide cover for our oil barons stealing 3rd world resources … it only amounted to more death overseas, more poverty at home. all while the MIC ballooned. no houses, no hospitals, no schools-just a growing crisis of homelessness, underemployment and diseases of despair in the wealthiest country on earth”
Reporting
Other statements by Hasan Piker in this case
- Piker: "I believe Zionism is fascism," and says he isn't worried his audience would turn violentLater: Defended or excused
- Piker: Israel "in its current formation" should not be a U.S. allyLater: Defended or excused
- Piker concedes the framing point: “the problem isn’t necessarily what I’m saying”Later: Defended or excused
Where this statement fits
Hasan Piker's Axios Show interview claims about terrorism, Iran, China and Israel
In an interview for "The Axios Show" conducted by Alex Thompson, Hasan Piker was asked whether America commits more terrorism than the organization behind the September 11 attacks and answered "Pound for pound as far as the number of deaths, yes," adding that the United States has "caused tremendous terror all around the world." He cited a U.S. missile strike on an elementary school in Minab, Iran, and said the analysis does not justify the September 11 attacks. Excerpts published September 17, 2026 also carried his view that the Middle East would be more stable if Iran had a nuclear weapon, while he said he does not want Iran, the United States, Russia or China to possess nuclear arms and was not advocating Iranian armament. The full episode, published September 18, added further contested claims: that Mao Zedong was "a great man of history" whose "excesses" were "deaths born out of mismanagement and famine"; that a Chinese child may have better conditions than an American one within two decades; that "Zionism is fascism" and that he is not worried his audience would turn violent against Zionists; and that Israel "in its current formation" should not be a U.S. ally. Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee in Michigan for whom Piker campaigned in the primary, rejected the al-Qaeda comparison. The dispute is whether these claims are defensible analysis of U.S., Middle Eastern and Chinese policy or indefensible positions, and what they mean for the candidates associated with him.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
The Hill's report of September 17, 2026, 1:44 PM ET, on backlash to Piker's Axios remarks from both Republicans and Democrats. It carries the fullest set of verbatim reactions found: Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) on social media; the official Republicans account calling on every Democrat supported by Piker to condemn him; and political strategist and "The View" co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin saying Piker is "an absolute soundbite machine for Republican ads." It also reproduces Piker's own follow-up posts, including a second post beyond the one already recorded in this case, about elites terrorising the world while ordinary Americans foot the bill. The report notes the Pentagon has not taken responsibility for the Minab strike.
Before the quotation
Piker had first responded to the circulating clip by accusing Axios of turning a nuanced answer into clickbait, which is recorded separately. The Hill reported these further posts in the same sequence.
After the quotation
The Washington Examiner reported that Piker continued the thread, calling Trump and the Republican Party "Epstein-class terrorists" and listing strikes on fishermen off the South American coast, continued arming of Israel and sanctions on Cuba; those posts are reported rather than quoted here.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Here he neither withdraws nor qualifies it but supplies the underlying argument, framing U.S. conduct as elite-driven terror paid for by ordinary Americans. That is a continued defence of the claim under scrutiny, consistent with his interview answer (955) and his response to the Axios framing (967), and it is recorded separately because it is a distinct statement making a distinct argument rather than a restatement. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”; it loses because he attaches no condition and combines no opposing position.
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- Published here
More from this case
Read the full caseKulinski defends Piker's comparison of U.S. actions with terrorism
“everything that Hasan said there is 100 percent factually true.”Read statement
JB Pritzker, asked whether Democrats should denounce Piker, redirects to stopping Trump
“You know, I'm not focused on the streamers and what they're saying. There's a whole lot of them, and they got a whole lot of views. I'm just saying that what I think we should be talking about and focused on is how do we stop Donald Trump in his tracks? How do we make sure that we're putting forward an agenda that really fights for the people who need it, which are the most vulnerable? The workers, you know, the middle class who really need someone to stand up for them. That's why I'm a Democrat. That's why the Democratic Party exists. That's what we should be focused on. You know, again, I'm not focused. I don't even want to talk about it. Hasan Piker doesn't mean anything to me or in my election.”Read statement
Francesca Fiorentini says Piker’s critics “made him the media figure for bad reasons” and would prefer he “do nothing at all”
“You made him the media figure for bad reasons. He was out here minding his damn business.” … “They would be absolutely okay with him utilizing his millions of followers to do nothing at all, because they would prefer that than for him to use the followers to actually boot out these do-nothing establishment Democrats”Read statement
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- Piker expands the argument: "our elites terrorize the entire world while ordinary americans continue to foot the bill"
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The Dispute Index. "Piker expands the argument: "our elites terrorize the entire world while ordinary americans continue to foot the bill"". First published: 2026-09-17. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/976-in-further-posts-the-same-day-beyond-the