Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed clashed with Fox News host Jesse Watters over sex changes for minors during an interview. He argued that healthcare decisions should remain between minors, parents, and doctors rather than the government. The exchange escalated when he raised circumcision while responding to questions about surgery on minors.
The discussion aired on Fox News, where Watters pressed him to say whether he supported sex changes for minors. El-Sayed responded that the government should not determine what healthcare someone receives.
For minors, he said those decisions should involve the patient, doctor, and parents. Watters accused him of dodging the question, prompting another defense of keeping government outside medical decisions.
“If you disagree with that, then I just think we agree to disagree,” El-Sayed said.
Watters then asked whether he believed a parent should be allowed to approve surgery on a child’s genitals. Instead of answering directly, El-Sayed asked Watters whether he was circumcised.
“That’s a personal question, doctor,” Watters replied.
The conversation continued as Watters asked whether circumcision was different from castration. El-Sayed again argued that parents, doctors and patients should determine medical care without government interference.
“Yes, circumcision is surgery on a kid’s ding-a-ling,” he said. He accused Watters of being selective about which procedures involving minors drew objections.
Watters rejected the argument as “wacky.” He told El-Sayed that “Michigan’s not going for that” and called it “sick stuff.”
Abdul El-Sayed Faces Backlash Over Circumcision Comparison
The exchange quickly drew criticism over the circumcision comparison, although some users defended the broader point behind his response.
“Circumcison is not sex change PERIOD!” one user wrote. Another stated, “Equating circumcision to castration is like equating a haircut to a lobotomy.”
A separate response argued, “This is pure nonsense. Circumcision has been practiced for thousands of years and doesn’t sterilize kids or change their sex. Gender surgeries on minors do both and are irreversible.”
Others focused on how he handled Watters’ questioning. “I finally had to mute this interview. El-Sayed never answered any questions, just walked sideways like a crab (not to disparage crabs),” one user wrote.
Some users disagreed with that reading. “That’s not remotely what he’s saying, but apparently you idiots can’t grasp the basic point being made here. And he’s right,” another wrote.
Another response stated, “Kids shouldn’t have that surgery but he’s right on Jews having their boys penis mutilated, why isn’t this banned like FGM should be too if it already isn’t.”
The interview ended without a direct yes-or-no answer on whether El-Sayed supported specific sex-change procedures for minors.
