Trump Is Accidentally Helping Abdul El-Sayed

Summary

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Bulwark Takes: Trump Is Accidentally Helping Abdul El-Sayed

Podcast: Bulwark Takes
Date: August 11, 2026
Host: Tim Miller, with guest commentary and clips
Theme: How Donald Trump’s attacks on Abdul El-Sayed are unwittingly boosting El-Sayed’s profile and possibly unifying the Democrats, plus analysis of AOC's positioning on "Woke 1.0".

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the strategic missteps in Donald Trump's ongoing attacks on Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed. Host Tim Miller reflects on how Trump is inadvertently increasing El-Sayed’s visibility and sympathy through offensive rhetoric, echoing establishment mistakes made against Trump in 2016. The show also features a discussion on the Democratic Party’s internal debates on Israel, party unity, and AOC’s comments on the evolution of progressive “Woke” politics.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump’s Racist Rhetoric and Its Unintended Benefits

[01:01-04:23] Tim Miller Reflects on Trump’s Attacks

• Trump’s Strategy Mirrors 2016 Mistakes:
  Tim Miller draws a parallel between how Republican elites empowered Trump in 2015-16 by endlessly criticizing his outrageous comments—which only boosted his attention and support—and how Trump is now using a similar attack playbook against El-Sayed:

  “A lot of the Republicans... thought the way to tear down Trump was ... oh, there’s this outrageous thing that he said that makes him totally unacceptable... But each time we did that, that gave Trump more attention and a significant percentage of the Republican base liked what he had to say and so that gave him more support. ... And you would think... the Trump people would kind of see how that worked in his favor. And yet they're deploying like the failed Republican establishment playbook against El Sayed.”
  — Tim Miller [01:44]

• Negative Attention Is Backfiring:
  By calling out El-Sayed for his positions, especially on Israel, Trump amplifies El-Sayed’s presence, just as anti-Trump outrage amplified Trump’s own appeal to a specific base:

  “Now what you’re doing is, like, giving him attention. El Sayed’s everywhere this weekend. He’s out on the shows. ... Every time Trump does a racist attack on him, we cover it here. He gets asked to do interviews ... the attacks are actually empowering him.”
  — Tim Miller [02:30]

• Performance Matters:
  Miller notes that like Trump, El-Sayed is “a good performer on TV, compelling to their audiences” [02:54], increasing his resonance with potential supporters.

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2. Dissecting Trump’s Own Words on El-Sayed

[05:55-07:13] Trump Clip & Commentary

• Trump’s Remarks:
  Trump refers to Democratic candidates as “jihadists” and disparages immigrants from “failed countries,” stopping short of explicit naming:

  “We have jihadists being elected all over the place. ... They come from other failed countries and they come here and they tell us how to run our country.”
  — Donald Trump [06:00]

• Miller’s Counterpoint:
  Miller clarifies El-Sayed's background and calls out Trump’s strategy as both factually wrong and a sign of political weakness:

  “Abdul El Sayed is from Michigan... And he’s not a jihadist, obviously. ... Trying to paint El-Sayed as an extremist... is like the only play he’s got in his playbook right now. And I do think it’s a sign of weakness.”
  — Tim Miller [07:18]

• Advice for Democrats:
  Miller insists the best Democratic response is not just to decry racism but to highlight Trump’s own failures:

  “It is racist. And you can say that. But... it’s just, again, totally a reflection of Trump’s failure... His administration is all about... is more socialist than any administration that we’ve had recently. ... [They’re] acting like the Eastern European socialists and Communists of the 1980s.”
  — Tim Miller [08:13]

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3. Party Unity and Fractions on Israel

[09:26-10:42] Intra-Democratic Debates

• The Israel Divide:
  Miller acknowledges internal Democratic splits, especially over Israel, suggesting El-Sayed needs to reach out to more centrist and pro-Israel Democrats:

  “In this Michigan Senate race... there is a faction of Democrats who are very passionate about our relationship with Israel and are really turned off by some of the rhetoric... Zoran in New York... put a ton of effort into reaching out to Jewish leaders... I think that’s going to be incumbent on El Sayed to do that and to make sure he’s winning over the Alessia Slotkin voters.”
  — Tim Miller [09:30]

• Trump’s Attacks Could Help Unity:
  While Trump’s Islamophobia may drive Democratic unity, Miller notes El-Sayed must also consolidate support in the party:

  “Donald Trump’s Islamophobia does help, for sure, I think, but I don’t know that it quite finishes the full job.”
  — Tim Miller [10:33]

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4. AOC and “Woke 1.0”

[10:50-13:45] Progressive Rhetoric & 2028 Speculation

• Introspective Left:
  Political commentators and Miller discuss whether progressives have reevaluated the “Woke 1.0” era:

  “Woke one was crazy.”
  — Local City Councilman via Political Commentator [11:22]
  “Did the movement go too far with some of those positions?”
  — Tim Miller [11:30]

• AOC’s Positioning:
  Miller speculates on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s future runs, noting her pragmatic shift:

  “I think she’s been very savvy lately, extremely savvy in picking battles... very pragmatic without sacrificing her more left policy.”
  — Tim Miller [12:20]

• Need for Deeper Reflection:
  Miller calls for more explicit progressive accountability on overreach:

  “That Answer on Woke 1.0 Being crazy is cute and makes me smile, but it leaves me... I need a little bit more from the left on that... A lot of those voters got turned off by some of the rhetoric during Woke 1.0. ... Some of our critics were correct about some of our overreach.”
  — Tim Miller [13:12]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Every time Trump does a racist attack on him, we cover it here. He gets asked to do interviews ... the attacks are actually empowering him.”
  — Tim Miller [02:30]

• “Abdul El Sayed is from Michigan, so there’s that. He is not from another country that’s invading our country... and he’s not a jihadist, obviously.”
  — Tim Miller [07:18]

• “Woke one was crazy.”
  — Local City Councilman (via Political Commentator) [11:22]

• “His [Trump’s] administration is more socialist than any administration we've had recently.”
  — Tim Miller [08:19]

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Important Segments and Timestamps

• [01:01-04:23] Tim Miller’s monologue on the parallels between how Trump was attacked in 2016 and how he is attacking El-Sayed
• [05:55-07:13] Donald Trump’s “jihadist” comments and Miller’s sharp rebuttal
• [09:26-10:42] Discussion of Democratic fractures over Israel and unity challenges
• [10:50-13:45] Conversation on AOC’s future and the evolution from “Woke 1.0”

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Conclusion

This episode frames Trump’s attacks on Abdul El-Sayed as both strategically short-sighted and potentially unifying for Democrats—if they harness them correctly. Tim Miller’s analysis urges Democrats not to default to a victim narrative, but instead to call out Trump’s failures and assert their own vision. The latter half’s discussion on “Woke 1.0” underscores the need for honest introspection on the left, with AOC's pragmatic adaptation seen as a model for Democratic candidates moving forward.

For more, subscribe and follow the Bulwark team’s coverage!

Transcript

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[Tim Miller]

Tim Miller from the Bulwark here. I was just on with Katie Tur and our girl Alex Wagner, and we were discussing Donald Trump's latest racist broadside against Abdul El Sayed, as well as some interesting comments that AOC made on the Sunday shows over the weekend. Just one kind of additional comment to what I said over on Katie Turner's show regarding the kind of racist broadsides against El Said just for a strategic matter, it doesn't feel like the Trump people have learned anything from the success of Trump in 2015. 16 A lot of the Republicans, my candidate Jeb, but also all of them, Marco, Scott Walker, Rand Paul, they thought the way to tear down Trump was the way to tear down past kind of politicians of being like, oh, he had this gaffe about John McCain or oh, there's this thing that this outrageous thing that he said that makes him totally unacceptable to be in office. But each time we did that, that gave Trump more attention and a significant percentage of the Republican base liked what he had to say and so that gave him more support. And it was this kind of never ending cycle where he was, we thought we were attacking him, but the attacks were helping him actually. And you would think that having been the beneficiary of that, the Trump people would kind of see how that worked in his favor. And yet they're deploying like the failed Republican establishment playbook against El Said, who is an outsider who's obviously different from Trump in a lot of ways. But like going at him and being like, oh, he said too many nasty things about Israel that's not going to hurt him. Okay. That's already baked in. Okay. People know what else position is on Middle east wars and his skepticism of Zionism and etc. Like, there are some voters out there for whom that's going to be disqualifying, but they already know. And so now what you're doing is, like, giving him attention. Elsad's everywhere this weekend. He's out on the shows. People are getting exposed to him. Another similarity he has to Trump is that they're good performers on tv. They're compelling to their audiences. I know that Donald Trump doesn't ever compel you guys, but, like, there's a certain group type of person that was drawn to Trump. That's why he had a successful fucking reality show. Right? And so El Sayed out there just kind of ripping the COVID off the ball in these interviews. And every time Trump does a racist attack on him, we cover it here. He gets asked to do interviews where he gets asked to respond to it. Like, the attacks are actually empowering him. Sometimes just in life, it's hard to kind of honestly assess your own success or your own skill set or why you got to a place you tell yourself a story that's different from the real story. And maybe that's the case here now with Donald Trump, that he doesn't recognize that a lot of his success was the failed way in which the establishment opposed him, and that now and now he is mimicking that failed strategy going after Abdul El Sayed. So we'll keep an eye on it. Much, much more on that with Katie. Turn Alex Wagner on the other side. Subscribe to the feed, please.

[Podcast Host]

Please.

[Tim Miller]

For God's sakes, is Benny Johnson still beating me? This is insulting. Tell your friends. We'll see you soon.

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[Podcast Host]

Joining us, host of the Bulwark podcast, Tim Miller, Alex Wagner. Still with us, it doesn't stop. Their folks don't. Donald Trump is in the Oval Office right now. He's talking about Abdul Said, let's play

[Tim Miller]

it, you know, heading into midterms right now and are Democrats with the candidates

[Donald Trump]

they're putting forward, making life easier for everyone? Well, the one thing is we have jihadists being elected all over the place. We have this whether it's communism, jihadism, it's a lot of friend of mine called up, he said, you know, really you should use the word jihadist because that's what's happening. And I'm not sure that anybody, if you take a look at what happens and other countries, I think that's not going to be necessarily the way we want to live. But when you look at the radicalism and the craziness of the candidates and the stupidity of what they're suggesting, let's get rid of the Supreme Court, let's get rid of the presidency, let's get rid of the Senate. They want to get, sometimes I'd like to get rid of the Senate too, but I don't say it and I wouldn't do it. But you know, they want to get rid of the Senate. They want to get rid of ideally the House, but they're thinking about maybe keeping the House. You know, isn't that nice? These are people that have been not successful. They're people that have been in many cases failures. They come from other failed countries and they come here and they tell us how to run our country. They come from places like I won't mention because I don't want to get myself into a controversy. But they come from countries that are.

[Podcast Host]

He doesn't want to get himself into a controversy, but he will call them jihadists, Tim?

[Tim Miller]

Well, Abdul El Sayed is from Michigan, so there's that. He does not from another country that's invading our country just in the first place. And he's not a jihadist, obviously. I think that should go without saying, I think that they're resorting to this kind of rhetoric because substantively, Donald Trump's in a really bad place right now, and he has a humiliating defeat he's facing in the war in Iran. The economy's not going well. And trying to paint El Sayed as an extremist or as a communist jihadist is like the only play he's got in his playbook right now. And I do think it's a sign of weakness. And I think that the Democrats really should be forcibly pushing back against us. There's some instinct, I think, sometimes to want to play the victim here and be like, oh, this is racist, poor us, and it is racist. And you can say that. But I think in addition to that, it's just, again, totally a reflection of Trump's failure. And Trump wants to act like he's running this kind of all American capitalist administration, and he's not. His administration is all about. Is more socialist than any administration that we've had recently. He's tried to purchase huge stakes in companies. He wants to berate CEOs and make him come there and beg the leader in order for them to get a break, whether it be on the tariffs or regulations. You know, think about what they're doing in the streets. You know, like this idea that they're calling him a Jiadas. Well, we. This administration was the one that had a gulag in El Salvador. This is the administration that has internment camps all across the country. They're the ones acting like the Eastern European socialists and Communists of the 1980s. So I just think that that's, like, the right way for Democrats to push back against them. Abdul Al Said was doing that all weekend. I think he's been pretty talented at that. And if they do that, I don't know that this is going to have a lot of bite.

[Podcast Host]

Do you agree that it unites the party, Tim, potentially?

[Tim Miller]

You know, look, I think that particularly in this Michigan Senate races and a couple other races, there is a faction of Democrats who are very passionate about our relationship with Israel and are really turned off by some of the rhetoric that they've heard by certain quarters of the left of the Democratic Party. And I think that that is a real big, fractious debate right now. And I think that Zoran, if you look at Zoran and in New York, has he won everybody over who had that criticism of him? No, I don't think so. Did he put a ton of effort into reaching out to Jewish leaders in the city, to others that had concerns about that? He really did after he got in. And I do think that's going to be incumbent on El Sayed to do that and to make sure he's winning over the Alessia Slotkin voters. You do remember Alyssa Slotkin did win in 2024, and so he's got to win those voters over in addition to continuing to excite the younger base of the Democratic Party that he excited and that drove him to a primary victory. So I think you can do of those things. I think he's got to do it. Donald Trump's Islamophobia does help, for sure, I think, but I don't know that it quite finishes the full job that he's got in front of him.

[Podcast Host]

All right, don't go anywhere. I want to talk on the other side about what AOC just said about Woke 1.0. That's how she described it.

[Political Commentator]

I mean, I think that a lot of these races, even right now, they'll have a tendency to be nationalized, but these races ultimately are local and all politics are local. My understanding is that. Is that Francesca Hong has made clear her present stances to her.

[Tim Miller]

Yeah, she's moved away from a lot of people.

[Donald Trump]

Right.

[Political Commentator]

She's moved away from it. And I have a local city councilman that has this saying, woke one was crazy.

[Tim Miller]

Woke one was crazy.

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Okay, that's interesting.

[Political Commentator]

And, and I think that what's important is that we have to assess what was it? I mean, did the movement go too

[Tim Miller]

far with some of those positions?

[Political Commentator]

I mean, you.

[Tim Miller]

You briefly supported the idea of defunding the police.

[Political Commentator]

Well, you know, I think. I think that during this time and during. Especially during COVID there was a huge opening of the overtone window. We were shut down. There was some of the highest unemployment rates that we have seen because of those shutdowns. And I think that the. The doors were really open in trying to entertain any and every policy that was going to get us to a better place. And I actually think that the discussions that had, that were had in that time were quite fruitful.

[Podcast Host]

She's interesting right now, Tim. Do you think she's going to put herself on the ballot for 2028?

[Tim Miller]

I think probably. Whether that be running against Chuck Schumer or maybe Chuck Schumer steps aside running for Senate or whether that's running for president? I think so. Not very many people are winning the New Hampshire primary polls and then decide not to run for president. Usually people do when they see it. So I suspect that she will. I think she's been very savvy lately, extremely savvy in picking battles, not choosing battles like the main Senate race. I think that she's been very pragmatic without kind of sacrificing her more left policy. That Answer on Woke 1.0 Being crazy is cute and makes me smile, but it is, it leaves me, I need a little bit more from the left on that because I think that they turned off a lot of voters with some of the stuff that happened during Woke 1.0 and really did damage, I think, to the Democratic brand and the pro democracy brand and their ability to win in red parts of the country, places that used to be swing states like Iowa, Ohio, Florida, et cetera. And a lot of those voters got turned off by some of the rhetoric during Woke 1.0. And so I would like to go a little bit further from just oh, that was crazy. We were all in a crazy time to like that was crazy. And we heard your pushback and you know, you were right about a couple of things. Right, like I still am a. I still have left progressive views. But I think that some of our critics were correct about some of our overreach, whether that be on defund the police or other related issues.

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