Muslim Michigan Senate Candidate Responds To Trump: 'Sarah And I Actually Like Each Other'

Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed responded to President Donald Trump on Sunday after the president shared a social media post comparing the candidate and his wife to Trump and First Lady Melania Trump. The post, which featured side-by-side photographs of the two couples with the caption "Two very different Americas," Drew widespread criticism for being Islamophobic and racist. El-Sayed's wife, Dr. Sarah Jukaku, wears a hijab.

Trump has repeatedly attacked El-Sayed since the progressive Democrat won Michigan's Democratic Senate primary, securing a spot in the November general election. The president's post identified El-Sayed by his full name, a practice increasingly used by Republican critics following the primary victory.

Appearing on CNN's State of the Union, El-Sayed dismissed the attack and countered with remarks about the president's own marriage. "Yes, you've got two different visions of America," He said. "One in which your overlords are two people who don't like each other but joined together in the interest of making billions of dollars off of you, or two people who genuinely love each other and enjoyed some pancakes together. Sara and I actually like each other. I don't know about the first lady and the president, but from what I've heard, it's a bit of a rocky road."

El-Sayed, a former Detroit public health official and self-described progressive who has taken a pro-Palestinian stance, defeated centrist Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens in the primary. He will face Republican Mike Rogers in November in a closely watched Senate race. If elected, El-Sayed would become the first Muslim to serve in the U.S. Senate.

Republican opponents have sought to portray him as an extremist. Trump labeled him a "communist" On social media following the primary results.

During the CNN interview, El-Sayed focused his message on economic issues, asking: "Can you afford your gas? Can you afford your groceries?" He explained his candidacy by referencing his daughters: "Sara and I are running because when we look our daughters in the eye, Emmalee and Serene, we want them to believe they're every bit as capable of having a better future than the one they would have had under the Trump administration."

El-Sayed also mentioned he recently spoke with former President Barack Obama but declined to discuss whether Obama would campaign for him, saying "I'd like to keep that conversation private. But it was a really warm conversation."