Michigan’s Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, Abdul El-Sayed, pivoted fully into general-election mode Sunday, arguing the Democratic Party has its differences but stands united in its desire to combat the “moral rot” at the Trump administration and corporate interests.
Mr. El-Sayed stressed Democratic unity after he narrowly defeated Rep. Haley Stevens in a hard-fought primary that exposed fractures between the party establishment and its uber-liberal wing.
“The differences that we hashed out are so much smaller than the similarities that we share,” Mr. El-Sayed told CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Mr. El-Sayed recently spoke to Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, hoping to patch things up after calling for Mr. Schumer’s ouster as party leader during the primary. The nominee also spoke to former President Barack Obama.
He is trying to rally general-election support after running on primary positions that might be too extreme for some centrists or independents, such as abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and cutting off all military aid to Israel.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Mr. El-Sayed and other hard-left Democrats should make peace with centrist Democrats “that they were vilifying online.”
“I’m just hoping that the people who come across well on the screen are also people who can produce results, because that’s not always the same thing,” Mrs. Clinton said on journalist Kara Swisher’s podcast.
Mr. El-Sayed said he is confident he can defeat Republican nominee Mike Rogers, a former congressman, in November, and be an effective part of the Democratic team.
Yet Mr. Rogers is already trying to pick off would-be El-Sayed voters. He posted a direct appeal to Democrats to cross lines and join his side.
“To the vast majority of people across Michigan who do not want to throw their support behind a campaign filled with anger, divisiveness, calls for violence and views that are out of touch with your values, you have a home with us,” Mr. Rogers said. “The fight is far greater than just left versus right. The fight is for the very soul of our nation.”
On Sunday, Mr. El-Sayed said he is already thinking ahead to life under a Democratic majority in the Senate.
“The first thing we need to do is start holding the Trump administration accountable,” Mr. El-Sayed said.
He said Democrats should exercise their subpoena power to examine whether the president’s team used policies for “their gain and enrichment, and against ours.”
Mr. El-Sayed, an epidemiologist, wants to haul Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. before Congress to examine his unorthodox views and stewardship of public health, citing a recent lettuce-driven outbreak of explosive diarrhea.
He also wants to re-examine the tax system to make sure it is fair for lower-income people, not just the wealthy
Mr. El-Sayed does not describe himself as a socialist, though President Trump and Republicans say he is part of a clear tide of socialist policies in the Democratic Party. The president goes an extra step, dubbing them communists.
Mr. El-Sayed is among Democrats in the vein of Sen. Bernard Sanders, Vermont independent and self-described democratic socialist, who want to push bold ideas such as “Medicare for all” but face harsh realities in getting there, including the Senate filibuster requiring 60 votes to advance legislation.
Mr. El-Sayed said while liberals fight for single-payer health care, they can take interim steps such as restoring supersized Obamacare subsidies that were canceled by Republican majorities in this Congress.
“I think we need to start with making those whole,” Mr. El-Sayed said. “But Medicare for all is where we need to go.”
