HotAir Columnist Defends Haley Stevens After She Withheld El-Sayed Endorsement

In a HotAir column, David Strom writes about the backlash Haley Stevens faced from fellow Democrats after she declined to endorse Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. Strom defends Stevens and criticizes the reaction within her party.

Key points

• The dispute: According to Strom, Stevens asked El-Sayed to condemn an ad linking Michigan grocery prices to aid for Israel and to reject commentator Hasan Piker. Strom says El-Sayed would not, and Stevens withheld her endorsement.
• Party reaction: Strom writes that the Michigan Democratic chair pushed Stevens out of the party and that her top staff quit.
• Critics named: The column cites posts on X describing criticism of Stevens from James Carville, George Conway, Bill Kristol and Keith Olbermann, along with an angry rant by Piker.
• Backing for El-Sayed: The column includes a post from Ilhan Omar supporting El-Sayed and dismissing his critics as "shills for AIPAC."

Quick take

Strom argues that some of the attacks on Stevens leaned on antisemitic themes, including suggestions that her Jewish fiancé was steering her, and that several posts hinted at revenge once the election is over. He contends that the Democratic Party has moved far from where it stood in 2001 and that ordinary Democrats have largely shrugged at all of it.

Read the full story at HotAir.