The PBS News Hour brought on Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed on Thursday night for the DEI occasion of the first Muslim PBS anchor to interview the first Muslim elected to the Senate. Amna Nawaz was just as pliant a Democrat talking point-enabler here as she was to Rep. Hakeem Jeffries.
The online headline was anodyne:
Abdul El-Sayed on Democratic leadership, health care access and inspiring a new generation
Many of the questions were open-ended softballs, like the first one: “You're here for orientation now. You've been a few days in Washington meeting new lawmakers. What's it been like? What surprised you most?”
After that soft line of questioning, she turned to Chuck Schumer, and the leftist campaign to remove him as the Senate Democrat leader:
NAWAZ: One of the first big decisions you're going to have to make is who will lead the Democrats in the Senate. You have acknowledged the work and the leadership of Chuck Schumer helping to secure these really big historic Senate wins. But you have called for Senator Chris Van Hollen to be the next majority leader for the Senate Democrats. Why are you backing him?
And when he touted the Maryland Democrats’ “fresh approach,” she followed up: “You think Van Hollen is a fresh approach? I mean, he's been in Congress since early 2000.”
The meatiest part of the interview was the Muslims vs. Jews part, or the leftist Democrats vs. Jews part. Nawaz asked about party unity, like a good Nancy Pelosi helper:
NAWAZ: Your win in Michigan was nothing if not dramatic. Besides making history in someone with your faith joining the Senate, you overcame your primary rival, Haley Stevens, endorsing your Republican opponent at the last minute and you still won by seven points. Have you talked to Haley Stevens since then, or heard from her since your win?
EL-SAYED: No, I'm more focused on leading for Michigan.
NAWAZ: Do you anticipate speaking with her? And the reason I ask is because Democrats say they want a big tent party. Some are calling for her to be expelled. Is there room in the Democratic Party for someone like Haley Stevens?
EL-SAYED: Well, when you self-expel, at some point, you're choosing to walk all the way out of the tent. And that was a choice she made.
That was that. The PBS anchor followed up with Israel:
NAWAZ: And yet, your party has not yet reached consensus on this big issue of U.S. support for Israel. It was a big issue during your primary. Continues to divide many Democrats. Do you need to reach some kind of consensus to be legislatively united?
El-Sayed claimed the public voted against Israel in the midterms: "Tell you this, the public has pretty much clearly reached consensus. We don't pay our tax dollars to buy bombs and tanks for other countries."
Then Nawaz wrapped up with the inevitable Islamophobia question:
NAWAZ: The last time you and I talked was several years ago. You were running for governor of Michigan back then and you were just about to become a father for the first time. Your daughter was, I think, days before she was born. You've seen since then anti-Muslim sentiment continue to rise in this country and it showed up in attacks against you in this election cycle. Your eldest daughter in particular, now she's old enough to see that and to hear that. And I just wonder what you and your wife tell her and talk to her about.
Notice there's no litigating his family's ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, and his own letter demanding they purge the press in Egypt. PBS is happy to scare viewers about the "Christian nationalism" Mike Johnson wants to push on America. But any specifics on the Islamic left must be hate speech. Instead, Abdul is granted a long victory speech, about how he negotiates his daughters through ugly commercials, but America is better:
EL-SAYED: I had 19 months of traveling up and down my state, meeting people who had never met somebody of my faith before, who are less interested in talking about faith and our differences than using our differences and an opportunity to talk about what we share together. That's human nature and human instinct. And there's always a few small-minded people who want to make America small like them. But America always responds and reminds us just how big America is. And that's a real gift.
This reminds you of one obvious political fact: This is what PBS is for -- providing a Talking Points Channel for Democrats.
