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Popular left-wing streamer Hasan Piker drew stiff criticism from prominent Democrats on Monday after arguing that some Jewish Americans’ support for Israel is “making antisemitism worse” — leading one of his most prominent political allies, Democratic Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, to say that “nobody” speaks for him.

It’s the latest controversy in the hotly contested Michigan Senate race to revolve around Piker, who campaigned with El-Sayed during the Democratic primary. Piker’s often-heated remarks about Israel and U.S. foreign policy — which he offers up in hourslong live streams on the platform Twitch — have divided Michigan Democrats and drawn condemnation from the GOP Senate nominee, Mike Rogers, who has sought to tie the streamer’s remarks to El-Sayed.

Almost two hours into one stream last week, Piker criticized Jeremy Moss, the Democratic nominee for a suburban Michigan Congressional seat. Moss hasn’t endorsed El-Sayed, telling Slate he needs to “demonstrate some serious outreach to Oakland County’s Jewish community.”

Piker argued the “connection between Israel and Zionism that is expressed over and over again through a lot of these Jewish institutions is teaching people the idea that Jews are monolithic” — which he called a “very dangerous mode of propaganda.”

“And you want to know why? Because people don’t f*** with Israel any longer,” Piker said. “And if Jews in America keep putting this idea out there that they are singularly invested in Israel, eventually someone’s going to come around and take action, not against the state of Israel, mind you, but against American Jews.”

Several minutes later, Piker added: “You’re running around, basically tying your entire identity to a country that inevitably will be seen as basically Jewish ISIS, and you’re saying, as Jews, this is all we care about. You’re making antisemitism worse.”

On Monday, after clips of Piker’s stream circulated widely, El-Sayed’s campaign issued a statement that did not directly weigh in on Piker’s comments — but said “nobody speaks for this campaign besides me and my campaign spokespeople.”

“I believe all Americans deserve the right to advocate for what they believe without fear of violence. This is particularly true for communities that have been intimidated for their beliefs in the past,” he said. “My commitment to Jewish safety is the same as my commitment to the safety of my own daughters. Antisemitism is a scourge, and we need to address it in all its forms. And I stand against any rhetoric that puts the community at risk.”

El-Sayed went on to argue “politicians and pundits” are seeking “to make this race about a Twitch streamer.” 

El Sayed appeared at a press conference on Tuesday, addressing the “recent rise in hateful rhetoric targeting Michigan communities.” Piker’s comments did not come up during an interview Monday night with Fox News’ Jesse Watters. 

Rogers argued El-Sayed hasn’t done enough to distance himself from Piker, calling the Senate candidate’s comments a “sham statement” and referring to Piker as El-Sayed’s “running mate.”

“Abdul’s attempt at distancing himself from this violent and hateful rhetoric now that he and Hasan won the primary is the epitome of what a conman does — says one thing when it serves him and another when it doesn’t,” wrote Rogers, a former House member, in a campaign statement.

Piker’s comments drew intense pushback from several Democrats. Michigan Rep. Hillary Scholten, a Democrat who has not yet endorsed El-Sayed, called his remarks “antisemitic” in a statement on Monday.

“Piker is a hack who thrives on hate, shock and awe because he lacks substance,” she said. “It’s dangerous for everyone. We should all be calling out this disgusting rhetoric so it loses its grip on our politics once and for all. It has no place in Michigan, and no place in our country.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, wrote on X that the “malicious claim that American Jews are inviting violence against themselves is dangerous and antisemitic.” His post did not mention Piker by name.

Moss said in a statement that “I will not be lectured by a California podcaster about what Oakland County, Michigan’s Jewish community should and shouldn’t believe. And we certainly won’t be gaslit that we’re responsible for the antisemitic harm upon us.”

Moss also said he and El-Sayed have been in “continual dialogue” since winning their respective primaries, and “there is still work ahead to unite our ticket despite our differences.” He added that he will not support Rogers, the Republican nominee. 

In a press conference Tuesday to condemn an anti-Islam demonstration in Michigan by conservative activist Jake Lang, El-Sayed said he was not going to “sugarcoat” his differences with Moss on Israel and foreign policy. 

“My hope is that folks understand where those disagreements align, and also understand that that does not come at the cost of Jewish safety,” El-Sayed said. 

Piker has stood by his comments and said his intent was to warn about antisemitism — not to advocate for it. He wrote in one X post that he was arguing “against the dangerous false conflation between zionism and judaism which in turn increases antisemitism. … zionism is not judaism. antizionism is not antisemitism.”

In a Monday live stream, Piker called the criticism against him a “smear campaign” and “incredibly frustrating,” saying: “I am being used as a distraction.” He also said “nobody is going to be happy with” El-Sayed’s statement distancing himself from Piker’s comments.

WTX US News has reached out to Piker for further comment.

Piker — who has millions of followers on Twitch and is popular with young progressives — campaigned alongside El-Sayed in rallies at Michigan State and the University of Michigan earlier this year, as El-Sayed competed with moderate Rep. Haley Stevens for the Democratic Senate nomination. 

But Piker has faced intense scrutiny for incendiary comments that he has made on social media and in his marathon live streams, including that Hamas is “1,000 times better” than Israel and — in one 2019 remark — that “America deserved 9/11.” (Piker has since apologized for his comments on 9/11, but described his comments on Hamas as “intentionally provocative.”)

Asked by WTX US News before the primary about campaigning with Piker, El-Sayed said “there are things he and I are going to disagree on,” but that his audience is worth connecting with.

“The idea that somehow I am going to hold myself accountable to the worst thing he said, and then not reach out to his audience? No. He said things [I’m] going to disagree with. I’ve said things he’s going to disagree with, and vice versa. But that’s how public conversation works,” El-Sayed told senior White House and political correspondent WTX US News Ed O’Keefe on Aug. 3.