Texas Sen. Ted Cruz questioned Kyle Shideler about alleged Muslim Brotherhood ties involving Abdul El-Sayed. Their exchange centered on El-Sayed’s relatives and connections to ISNA and Emgage. It drew attention after Shideler said those associations raised concerns about El-Sayed’s candidacy.
The video opened with Cruz asking whether El-Sayed’s candidacy concerned Shideler. Shideler replied, “Yes, sir, it does.”
He first pointed to El-Sayed’s father-in-law, Jukaku Tayeb. Shideler said Tayeb once led CAIR-Michigan and served on ISNA’s Founders Committee. He described the committee as serving ISNA’s most devoted supporters and significant funders. Shideler added that other known Brotherhood members also served on it.
From there, Shideler turned to El-Sayed’s ties with Emgage. He described it as a Muslim voter outreach and candidate recruitment group with close CAIR ties. Shideler said a former CAIR member created Emgage. He also alleged that person once appeared on a terror watch list. Shideler further said the individual consulted for convicted terrorist Samuel Aryan.
Cruz then asked whether ISNA remained part of the Muslim Brotherhood network in the United States. Shideler answered, “Yes, sir, I do.” He cited HLF documents that, he said, showed Brotherhood concerns about losing control.
The exchange presented Shideler’s allegations without independently establishing wrongdoing by El-Sayed. The clip did not include El-Sayed’s response.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s Questions About Abdul El-Sayed Spark Debate
The claims prompted competing demands for greater scrutiny and objections that El-Sayed was being judged through his associations.
Several responses called for disqualification or further investigation. One X user wrote, “THE GUY SHOULDNT BE ALLOWED TO RUN FOR OFFICE!!! I THOUGHT TIES TO TERRORISTS WAS A DISQUALIFICATION??”
Another argued, “Any documented link to groups with proven historical ties to Hamas funding networks (via federal court evidence) should be disqualifying for the U.S. Senate. Just saying ‘elect Mike Rogers’ is not enough.”
The demand for action also extended to the evidence behind the allegations. One response stated, “Voters need the full, documented record on these CAIR/ISNA ties before November—not spin. Accountability isn’t optional.”
Another user wrote, “So do something about it!! He should be disqualified from running for office. Same with Ilhan, but she is still there years later! So tired of nothing getting done!!”
Other users rejected the claims and questioned how they were presented. One response said, “No. This allegation went around several times during the campaign and was thoroughly debunked. This is no ‘gotcha’ moment. You could’ve checked before posting and found that. Y’all are pathetic and grasping at straws.”
Another argued, “Fairness means judging candidates on their own platforms rather than tying them to relatives or associations through guilt-by-association claims.”
It remains unclear whether the allegations will lead to further scrutiny of El-Sayed’s candidacy.
