American stand-up comedian, storyteller and broadcaster. He was a correspondent on Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and has appeared on NBC's The Tonight Show. He joined Fox News in 2015, hosted the late-night programme Red Eye and is a regular panellist on Gutfeld!.
Case
Hasan Piker told Axios the US has caused more terrorism than al-Qaeda "pound for pound." The full episode added more contested claims -- on Iran's nuclear programme, Mao Zedong, China and Zionism -- and drew condemnation from both parties.
Role at the time: Comedian and Fox News contributor, as a co-host of The Five
Statement summary
Asked for his view, Shillue said Piker was “ridiculous” but a podcaster being provocative, and that the political responsibility lay with El-Sayed, who chose to campaign with him for his audience. He said he disliked “that denounce game,” comparing it to demands that Barack Obama denounce Jeremiah Wright, and argued that El-Sayed's own record was the better target.
“Obviously, Hasan Piker is ridiculous. He is a podcaster, he's provocative, he does that, that's his game. But the politicians decided. El-Sayed decided to pal around with him. Why? Because they thought, “I can deal with this controversy because I want his likes, I want his listeners, his viewers.” So he is tied to him. … I don't like that denounce game. You know, I remember we tried that with Obama: “When will you denounce Reverend Wright?” … El-Sayed is on record. He has a terrible record. He's a terrible leftist. So denounce him. Don't say, “When are you going to denounce this other guy?” He's got enough bad things to his name.”
Relative to the case's fixed reference point — the claims Piker made in the Axios Show interview — Shillue minimizes. He grants the criticism in a single word — “ridiculous” — and then reframes the statements as a performer's stock in trade, “he's provocative, he does that, that's his game,” which treats them as predictable rather than serious, and he expressly rejects the demand made elsewhere on this dossier by Mike Rogers and the NRSC that El-Sayed denounce him. The closest competing label is condemns, which loses because “ridiculous” is the whole of his evaluation of the statements; the substance of his answer is that they do not warrant the response they are getting and that El-Sayed's own record is the proper target.
Statement dates: September 18, 2026
Statement dates: September 18, 2026
Statement dates: September 18, 2026
