In the Tuesday afternoon election pre-game coverage on MS NOW, The Moment host Katy Tur continued her progressive network’s disdain for President Trump and Republicans' overall messaging against far-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, and called Trump’s closing message an attempt to go after “voters who are Islamophobic.”
Frequent contributor Molly Jong-Fast first said El-Sayed's campaign in Michigan was “trying to make right” the issues the party had in 2024 in the state, mainly the far-left uncommitted vote as a protest over Israel's War on Hamas after October 7th, 2023. She described the new election cycle for Democrats with El-Sayed in Michigan as the party “making peace.”
MS NOW Political Director Shawna Thomas also joined Tur’s panel and took time to praise the embattled DNC and chair Ken Martin’s funding for Michigan. She then noted the close race in the 2024 Senate between now-Senator Democrat Elissa Stlokin and Republican candidate Mike Rogers, also running in 2026, while Trump won the state in 2024.
MS NOW’s Katy Tur claims Trump’s closing message for the midterms at the reflecting pool speech was “calling El-Sayed a terrorist” and “jihadist,” as he was “going after voters who are Islamophobic, trying to drum that up.” pic.twitter.com/R2y1qzlC3d
— Nick (@nspin310) November 3, 2026
Tur responded, “And she didn't win it by much. And so that's why Republicans are still so focused on Michigan, as you were saying.”\\
But she then turned to attack Trump’s closing message, first by mocking the reflecting pool speech: “And, Jon, we heard the president yesterday in his closing message ahead of the midterms to about 60 people on the reflecting pool, 20 minutes of which he spent talking about the reflecting pool and the algae and the disrepair that he says he fixed.”
In Tur’s own closing message, she returned to the discussion over El-Sayed and claimed there was “Islamophobia” at play, pointing at voters in the process:
When he got to the election cycle, he focused in on Michigan and not on, you know, the policies or the, you know, the affordability crisis, or any of the things that people have said they are worried about on the top of the polling. Instead, he called El Sayed a terrorist, a jihadist, going after voters who are Islamophobic, trying to drum that up.
No mention was made of El-Sayed's alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, which he freaks out at any slight mention of in questions from reporters, including tense interviews with NBC’s Tom Llamas and Fox News’s Bret Baier.
Furthermore, Morning Joe co-host Jonathan Lemire chimed in, also mocking the reflecting pool speech, before first claiming the claims of El-Sayed’s connection to the DSA were false, since he was not a dues-paying member:
Mornings Joe's Jonathan Lemrie then echoed disdain for what he called "anti-Islamic rhetoric" and claimed the Stevens' endorsement of Republican Mike Rogers insulted Black voters and could help El-Sayed. pic.twitter.com/neVopzdnva
— Nick (@nspin310) November 3, 2026
But you're correct that the lead has become in many ways the symbol of the Democratic Party this cycle. At least Republicans are trying to make him that, you know, because of his affiliations with the DSA, though he himself, not a member.
Lemire then decided “anti-Islamic rhetoric”:
“But of course, we're seeing this now, this sort of recycled, reheated, I mean, let's call it for what it is, anti-Islamic rhetoric from President Trump and a number of his fellow Republicans. He's trying to make El Sayed the boogeyman here.
Lemire then coped that Democrat Haley Stevens’ endorsement for Rogers actually helped El-Sayed, and claimed it insulted Black voters:
We'll see what impact, if any, the Haley Stevens switch here, that her reverse endorsement will have, quite likely not much. And frankly, it might even backfire to what she intended. Certainly, we've heard stories in the last 24 hours or so, 48 hours in Michigan, that it's actually fired up voters there, Democrats there, including some black voters who feel like they've been, you know, were used as a pawn at the Black church where Rogers and Stevens appeared together to make that endorsement official and the like.
He concluded, “But, you know, this is certainly one of the most closely watched Senate races of the cycle, but it's not clear that Trump's attacks have really landed.”
The transcript is below. Click "expand":
MS NOW’s The Moment with Katy Tur
November 3, 2026
2:13:52 PM Eastern
(...)
MOLLY JONG-FAST: Also, I do think there's a feeling - What Abdul is doing in Michigan, after – it's a sort of trying to make right in a way that Democrats, you know, felt – I think there were a lot of Democrats that felt they were not listened to about certain things in the ‘24 cycle. And so in some ways, I think there's been a sort of like making peace and a sort of kumbaya- ish, like part parts of the party getting together in Michigan.
SHAWNA THOMAS: And also trying to rebuild in Michigan. I think if you talked to Curtis Hotel, who is the Michigan Democratic Party chair, you know, I talked to him earlier this year and he said despite the fact that the DNC has taken a lot of BS for not having as much money at the end of this election as the Republicans did, he gave Ken Martin credit for sending money to Michigan early on so that they could build some of that, so that they could act on the fact that Elissa Slotkin won her Senate race. But President Trump won the state.
KATY TUR: And she didn't win it by much. And so that's why Republicans are still so focused on Michigan, as you were saying.
And, Jon, we heard the president yesterday in his closing message ahead of the midterms to about 60 people on the reflecting pool, 20 minutes of which he spent talking about the reflecting pool and the algae and the disrepair that he says he fixed.
When he got to the election cycle, he focused in on Michigan and not on, you know, the policies or the, you know, the affordability crisis, or any of the things that people have said they are worried about on the top of the polling. Instead, he called El Sayed a terrorist, a jihadist, going after voters who are Islamophobic, trying to drum that up.
JONATHAN LEMIRE: Well, we've levied criticisms at President Trump all year long for being out of touch. But to be fair, algae is an 80/20 issue, so he's right on that one.
But you're correct that the lead has become in many ways the symbol of the Democratic Party this cycle. At least Republicans are trying to make him that, you know, because of his affiliations with the DSA, though he himself not a member. But of course, we're seeing this now, this sort of recycled, reheated, I mean, let's call it for what it is, anti-Islamic rhetoric from President Trump and a number of his fellow Republicans. He's trying to make El Sayed the boogeyman here.
We'll see if it works. Polls certainly suggest that El Sayed has a lead, although I agree, I wouldn't say it's plus 11. We'll see what impact, if any, the Haley Stevens switch here, that her reverse endorsement will have, quite likely not much. And frankly, it might even backfire to what she intended. Certainly, we've heard stories in the last 24 hours or so, 48 hours in Michigan, that it's actually fired up voters there, Democrats there, including some black voters who feel like they've been, you know, were used as a pawn at the Black church where Rogers and Stevens appeared together to make that endorsement official and the like. But, you know, this is certainly one of the most closely watched Senate races of the cycle, but it's not clear that Trump's attacks have really landed.
(...)
