Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed accused rival Mike Rogers of reversing his position on tariffs with Canada. The accusation followed a Rogers campaign video calling for an immediate end to the tariff war. The clash centers on Rogers’ current position and El-Sayed’s claim that he previously supported the policy.
Rogers posted the campaign video on X and said, “Canada is not our enemy.” He added, “We need to end this tariff war now.” He promised to work with both parties to lower prices if elected to the Senate. He then accused El-Sayed of supporting a $3,000 tax increase for Michigan families.
El-Sayed responded by accusing Rogers of flip-flopping after previously backing the tariff fight. “You cheerled this tariff war from the beginning,” he wrote. He claimed Rogers changed course because his poll numbers were “in free fall.” El-Sayed also blamed Donald Trump for the trade war and dismissed Rogers as “not a serious person.”
Critics Turn Flip-Flop Charge Back on Abdul El-Sayed
The exchange quickly widened into a dispute over which Michigan Senate candidate had shifted positions.
One response turned El-Sayed’s accusation directly back on him: “no one flip flops more than you. How’s Hassan Piker?” Another user wrote, “You’ve flipped flopped so many times you need a pogo stick to keep up with the speed of your flops.”
A separate response called El-Sayed “the flip flopper himself,” questioning changes involving Hasan Piker, dual citizenship and his economic positioning. Another focused specifically on tariffs: “You spent the primary calling Trump’s tariffs a vanity war, then put ‘smart, targeted tariffs’ on his own platform.” The user added, “That’s not a contrast. That’s the same move with a different slogan.”
Others backed El-Sayed’s criticism of Rogers. One response said, “Mike seems to just be copying your points right now.” Another called Rogers’ approach a “last ditch insincere effort to save your campaign.”
The exchange leaves their competing tariff records under dispute. The campaign fight over Canada tariffs remains unresolved.
