Abdul El-Sayed Was A Glimmer Of Light In The Sunday Shows Darkness

We watch so you never have to!

Zack Morris is right!

Every week, we focus on the dumb lies told by the dumbest of liars on the Sunday shows. And while that is still the case this week, we also got a bit of cautious optimism for the future.

So let’s dive in.

We begin with the Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, making dual appearances on CNN’s State Of The Union and NBC’s Meet The Press.

El-Sayed’s appearances were a masterclass of staying on message while expertly handling questions from CNN’s Jake Tapper and NBC’s Kristen Welker. But the part that gives us hope about candidates like El-Sayed is their recognition that our politics are now post-Trump.

Like when asked by Tapper about an personal attack from Trump, El-Sayed countered with that Michigan “stick it to ‘em” his primary opponent talked about.

El-Sayed does not bring the Queensberry Rules handbook, like a lot of establishment Dems, to a political knife fight. We like that.

On NBC, Welker tried to do the “how can we afford healthcare as a right?” lament, shortly after showing concern for poor billionaires having to pay more taxes, before El-Sayed explained we can afford it because it’s just a matter of shifting a few priorities.

EL-SAYED: I’m saying that we’d be paying for healthcare in a different way. Instead of paying a health insurance company, whose CEO makes $20 million, I would much rather pay for durable healthcare into a government, which, of course, we all know provides healthcare for seniors who need healthcare the most. So if I’m trading paying a CEO to make more money or paying a government to guarantee me healthcare, I’m picking the latter every time.

Thank you! This has always frustrated us about this conversation about healthcare. Bad political consultants and secret healthcare industry lobbyists always say things like “But what if the government rations care or denies you a service?” or “But you might not keep your doctors!” as if this doesn’t happen now. But often, it’s at the whim of healthcare CEOs or your employer choosing to change the company plan, rather than a government plan that could cover you even if you leave your job.

Welker then, after some questions about Republicans’ islamophobic attacks, decided to focus on the really important topics of our day, like comments made by streamer Hasan Piker that Piker himself has apologized for. El-Sayed answered the question perfectly, while denying Welker and other bad-faith actors their wish for a concession they’ll just ignore anyway.

On ABC’s This Week, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was also asked similar questions, and offered a similar take to El-Sayed's, while pointing out a bit of hypocrisy:

Rep. Ocasio-Cortez was also asked about and did not rule out the idea of running for president in the near future, which gives us a bit more hope.

Now back to the Republicans!

Trump Economic Advisor Kevin Hassett faceplanted when pressed about Trump’s economy on CNN.

Fox News Sunday couldn’t even polish Trump’s economic turds for Hassett.

Fox News’s own Maria Bartiromo tried and failed to answer similar questions on Fox & Friends Weekend, pretending that since the CEOs she talks to think things are going great (for them) that must mean they’re going great for everyone.

As long as CEOs’ stock portfolios are booming, right?

Time for some quick hits!

South Carolina Republican Senator Tim Scott feebly trying to lie and say Republicans using Abdul El-Sayed’s full name is just like when Tim Scott’s mom would shout his full name at him:

Indiana Republican Senator Jim Banks explained how troubled he is about the Max Miller allegations, and noted that he serves with Miller’s father-in-law Bernie Sanders.

Louisiana coward and outgoing Republican Senator Bill Cassidy wanted credit on Face The Nation for allllmost voting “no” on Todd Blanche, before he caved and did it anyway.

As R&B singer Brandy sang in 1998, "Almost Doesn’t Count”.

Have a week.

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