El-Sayed: Israel and Iran Both "Have Proven Dangerous In Their Own Way"
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2026/10/08/el-sayed_israel_and_iran_both_have_proven_dangerous_in_their_own_way.html

Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, a former public health official, and former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican, debate at WOOD TV8's Grand Rapids studio with political reporter Rick Albin moderating.

RICK ALBIN, WOOD-TV POLITICAL REPORTER, MODERATOR: Dr. El-Sayed, our next question addresses concerns from some in the Jewish community about your position on Israel. A supporter told News Nation's Leland Vittert at a rally that Israel is a bigger problem, or a bigger threat, I should say, to the United States than Iran. Leland then asked you which country you consider the greater threat to the United States, and here's part of your response.

ABDUL EL-SAYED, DEMOCRATIC U.S. SENATE NOMINEE: If you're going to be a senator, what do you view as the biggest threat? I've been more than extremely clear about this. I don't want our tax dollars being used to subsidize war abroad.

I don't want our tax dollars being used to fund unconditionally foreign militaries. I think it's important that we be the first among equals to enforce international law against any and every country that breaks it. So this sort of hypothetical, who's a bigger threat, is a dumb question. I'm sorry. (https://x.com/LelandVittert/status/2108175816790335877)

MODERATOR: Dr. El-Sayed, we got the part that you thought it was dumb, but we didn't understand or kind of get to that answer. So I'm going to ask you again tonight, who do you think is a bigger threat to the United States, Israel or Iran? You have 60 seconds.

EL-SAYED: And again, Rick, I'm just going to say that that's a ridiculous hypothetical, because here's what's happening right now. Our ostensible ally in Israel has lobbied us to go to war with Iran. We have watched as Iran has responded by bombing all kinds of countries in the Middle East and then choking off the world's energy supply.

So this is a situation in which I don't think we should be a part. I don't want to be pushed into war by Israel, and I don't want to be in a war with Iran. I want our money spent here to buy schools and health care and child care here. I don't understand why that is so inconceivable.

Now, I've got a guy to my left over here who thinks that the best use of our money is to go fight wars abroad. What has that given us? It's part of the reason why he was in Congress. Twelve trillion dollars, the national debt blew up because he's never seen a war he didn't want us fighting.

So I don't consider an ally, a country that takes us to wars we don't need to fight, and I don't want to be fighting wars we don't need to fight. I just think that makes both of them kind of dangerous.

MODERATOR: I'll ask one last time, Israel or Iran?

EL-SAYED: That's, again, a ridiculous question. I think both of them have proven dangerous in their own way. One, at risk of attacking us. One, getting us into wars we have no business fighting.