Mike Rogers skipped Tuesday’s debate over alleged moderator bias. So Abdul El-Sayed called him a ‘coward’ on local TV: ‘It tells you who he is’

Democratic Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed used an appearance on Fox 2 after Tuesday night’s debate to criticize Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers for staying away. El-Sayed said his opponent refused to take part in the Detroit event.

Speaking on the local station, El-Sayed said, “The elephant was not in the room. The elephant decided that they did not want to be in the room. The elephant cowarded out. Although, the elephants were all in the room in Dallas.” The remark referred to Rogers speaking at a recent GOP midterm convention in Texas.

El-Sayed said he could not understand the decision. “It’s wild to me that this guy is more interested in going to speak for what? Six minutes and 48 seconds in Dallas than he is to have 60 minutes with Michiganders here in Detroit,” he said. “But it tells you who he is, he’s a coward.”

Rogers campaign blamed Fox 2 moderator Roop Raj for alleged favoritism

Rogers did not appear at the Tuesday night debate. According to The Hill, his campaign said the moderator showed alleged favoritism toward the Democratic candidate.

Rogers campaign communications director, Alyssa Brouillet, said in a statement that Michiganders “deserve to see their candidates engage in a healthy, fair debate – not one compromised by media bias.” She directed criticism at Fox 2 journalist Roop Raj, who served as moderator.

Brouillet said Raj’s “bias and favoritism” caused the Republican to skip the debate. “Roop Raj has made his position clear, from praising Abdul as ‘brilliant’ to being celebrated by Hasan Piker as ‘my GOAT [greatest of all time]’ and bragging about his political stunts,” she said.

Raj asked El-Sayed during the debate about moderate Democratic voters who might back Rogers. El-Sayed has drawn notable support from across the political spectrum, such as when Tucker Carlson backed him and slammed Republican Mike Rogers as unfit to serve. El-Sayed said he wanted “to speak more broadly about what this campaign is about.”

“Folks want to make this campaign about all different kinds of things that are a distraction. The question ultimately is: Can you afford your life? Can you afford the things you have to buy every week, every month, every year? And if not, ask yourself: why not?” he said.

Rogers launched the “Democrats for Mike Rogers” coalition late last month. He presented the group at an event with a small number of Democrats that included Michigan state Rep. Karen Whitsett. This coalition-building effort comes as El-Sayed has publicly mocked Rogers’s political moves, such as trolling him over a retro-style game about a Dallas GOP convention appearance.