WEBVTT - The Hassan Piker Crisis Democrats Can't Escape 0:00:00.960 --> 0:00:03.519 And as part of the Great Big Beautiful Bill, we 0:00:03.900 --> 0:00:10.469 have massively expanded 529 education saving accounts tremendously, doubling the 0:00:10.550 --> 0:00:16.090 annual withdrawal cap from K-12 expenses to $ 20, 000 a year 0:00:16.430 --> 0:00:20.400 and allowing families to save the education and money for 0:00:20.520 --> 0:00:25.020 education at the private or religious school of your choice 0:00:25.070 --> 0:00:28.560 so that's something that never happened before nobody could even 0:00:28.620 --> 0:00:31.540 think about doing it they can't believe it's happened now 0:00:32.000 --> 0:00:34.490 and now for the first time ever families can also 0:00:34.530 --> 0:00:38.810 have their 529 accounts to support homeschool. 0:00:38.310 --> 0:00:43.129 Education You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson. 0:00:43.170 --> 0:00:45.199 Good Wednesday morning. It is nice to have you with 0:00:45.240 --> 0:00:47.720 us on the 47 Morning Update. And we've got one 0:00:47.780 --> 0:00:52.460 big story for you. Hassan Piker's latest comments are sparking 0:00:52.510 --> 0:00:56.870 a political firestorm. This time saying that if you are Jewish, 0:00:57.050 --> 0:01:00.650 you should be quiet and you certainly shouldn't associate yourself with... 0:01:00.990 --> 0:01:04.160 with israel and if you do you're to blame for 0:01:04.220 --> 0:01:08.260 anti-semitism and eventually in america well someone's going to come 0:01:08.580 --> 0:01:12.940 after you now democrats are being forced to walk away 0:01:13.060 --> 0:01:16.590 from hassan piker a little bit we explain exactly what 0:01:16.630 --> 0:01:19.370 all he said it is the 47 morning update and 0:01:19.410 --> 0:01:20.590 it starts right. 0:01:20.470 --> 0:01:22.150 Now Story number one. 0:01:22.350 --> 0:01:26.890 Yet again, there's another political controversy that is exploding right 0:01:27.020 --> 0:01:31.000 now around Hassan Piker. Now, Hassan Piker is one of 0:01:31.020 --> 0:01:37.100 the most influential left wing streamers online in America. He 0:01:37.120 --> 0:01:41.300 has now made yet again another offensive comment about American Jews. 0:01:41.819 --> 0:01:45.960 And now it is forcing Democrats to condemn exactly what 0:01:46.000 --> 0:01:49.550 he has said. They're now having to admit that, OK, 0:01:49.630 --> 0:01:53.860 maybe he actually is, well, anti-Semitic. And this story matters 0:01:53.920 --> 0:01:58.400 for a reason beyond one Internet personality saying something outrageous. 0:01:58.440 --> 0:02:02.900 That happens all the time. Hassan Piker has millions of followers. 0:02:03.260 --> 0:02:07.330 He has become a extremely influential voice among young progressives 0:02:07.890 --> 0:02:14.290 and Democratic politicians have appeared with him. courted his audience and, 0:02:14.350 --> 0:02:19.950 in some cases, campaigned alongside him. Now, finally, some Democrats 0:02:20.030 --> 0:02:23.609 are scrambling to put distance between themselves and Piker after 0:02:23.650 --> 0:02:27.790 his latest comments during a live stream last week. And 0:02:27.830 --> 0:02:31.450 that has now gone viral. Piker was discussing American Jews, 0:02:31.940 --> 0:02:36.160 Israel and anti-Semitism when he warned that if Jews in 0:02:36.200 --> 0:02:43.550 America continue presenting themselves as heavily invested in Israel, quote, Eventually, 0:02:43.650 --> 0:02:47.820 someone's going to come around and take action, quote unquote. 0:02:47.880 --> 0:02:52.320 Not against Israel, he said, but against American Jews. He 0:02:52.360 --> 0:02:55.040 went on to argue that Jews who tie their identity 0:02:55.080 --> 0:02:59.339 to Israel are making anti-Semitism worse. So in other words, 0:02:59.380 --> 0:03:01.750 if you're Jewish, shut up about it. And if you don't, 0:03:01.889 --> 0:03:04.270 someone's going to take you out. And if you like 0:03:04.389 --> 0:03:07.329 Israel and you're Jewish, then you're just making anti-Semitism worse. 0:03:07.370 --> 0:03:09.790 So therefore, it's your fault that you like Israel and 0:03:09.810 --> 0:03:12.779 you shouldn't do that. All of the implications of this 0:03:12.860 --> 0:03:17.830 argument are massively anti-Semitic, and even worse than that, they're 0:03:17.870 --> 0:03:20.740 calling for violence against anyone that is Jewish in America. 0:03:21.680 --> 0:03:25.180 You already have a massive problem with anti-Semitism and threats 0:03:25.250 --> 0:03:30.150 against Jewish institutions. They become an enormous concern. And so 0:03:30.190 --> 0:03:32.550 now Piker's like, hey, let's double down on that, right? 0:03:32.990 --> 0:03:36.650 Let's actually point at the Jews and say they're the 0:03:36.750 --> 0:03:40.210 ones responsible. Instead of being the victims, we're going to 0:03:40.250 --> 0:03:44.670 say it's your fault that this has happened to you. Now, Piker, 0:03:44.830 --> 0:03:49.220 of course, is disputing these interpretations as so many are angry. 0:03:49.440 --> 0:03:52.620 He says he wasn't, quote, advocating for violence. He says 0:03:52.660 --> 0:03:55.430 he was warning Jews about what he believes could happen 0:03:55.930 --> 0:04:00.310 because of political identification with Israel. He has called the 0:04:00.430 --> 0:04:03.630 outrage over his comments, quote unquote, a smear. Again, that's 0:04:03.670 --> 0:04:08.339 coming from APNews.com. But prominent Democrats are not buying that 0:04:08.380 --> 0:04:11.700 defense because they know it is absurd, ludicrous, and you 0:04:11.760 --> 0:04:15.470 can't defend this. The House Minority Leader, Hakeem Jeffries, has 0:04:15.510 --> 0:04:19.360 been forced to issue a statement. The malicious claims that 0:04:19.400 --> 0:04:24.450 American Jews are inviting violence against themselves is dangerous and anti-Semitic. 0:04:25.060 --> 0:04:28.600 Jeffries added that there is zero justification for threats against 0:04:28.640 --> 0:04:33.430 Jewish Americans. Scholten of Michigan went even further, saying she 0:04:33.470 --> 0:04:38.110 condemned Piker's talks of violence against American Jews, particularly because 0:04:38.130 --> 0:04:41.940 his live stream displayed a photograph of the Michigan State 0:04:42.160 --> 0:04:46.260 Senator Jeremy Moss, who is Jewish. She also called the 0:04:46.300 --> 0:04:50.060 rhetoric unacceptable and said it had no place in Michigan 0:04:50.360 --> 0:04:54.320 or even in America. And Moss himself also fired back, 0:04:54.360 --> 0:04:57.000 saying he wasn't going to be lectured by Hassan Piker, 0:04:57.640 --> 0:05:01.130 about what Michigan's Jewish community should believe in what Jews, 0:05:01.610 --> 0:05:05.080 and that Jews would not be gaslit, quote unquote, into 0:05:05.140 --> 0:05:09.350 believing they are responsible for anti-Semitic harm directed at them. 0:05:10.070 --> 0:05:13.090 But now comes the political problem. Now, before we get 0:05:13.130 --> 0:05:16.550 to that, we're talking literally right now about anti-Semitism, and 0:05:16.570 --> 0:05:19.150 it is continuing to rise around the world every day. 0:05:19.330 --> 0:05:22.330 And the Jewish people continue to pay the price, from 0:05:22.370 --> 0:05:26.110 growing threats against Jewish communities to acts of violence, harassment, 0:05:26.150 --> 0:05:30.000 and intimidation. Many Jewish families are living with fear simply 0:05:30.040 --> 0:05:33.980 because they are Jewish. Synagogues, schools, and community centers continue 0:05:34.040 --> 0:05:38.630 strengthening security as hatred spreads far beyond the headlines. And 0:05:38.670 --> 0:05:41.330 that's why the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is 0:05:41.390 --> 0:05:45.240 working every day in Israel and around the world, providing security, 0:05:45.460 --> 0:05:49.840 emergency assistance, food, and critical care for vulnerable Jewish communities. 0:05:50.300 --> 0:05:53.220 For more than 40 years, the fellowship has stood alongside 0:05:53.260 --> 0:05:56.800 the Jewish people, delivering practical support when it is needed 0:05:56.820 --> 0:06:00.790 the most. Hatred, it continues to spread, but compassion and 0:06:01.010 --> 0:06:04.529 action can make a world of difference. So I want 0:06:04.550 --> 0:06:07.940 you to join us. The International Fellowship of Christians and 0:06:07.980 --> 0:06:11.690 Jews and me in doing one simple thing, praying for 0:06:11.730 --> 0:06:14.930 the safety of the Jewish people, for peace in Israel, 0:06:15.330 --> 0:06:18.830 and for an end to anti-Semitism. Together, we can remind 0:06:18.870 --> 0:06:21.650 God's people that they are not alone. If you want 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:24.320 to know what to pray for, you can stand with 0:06:24.400 --> 0:06:29.679 Israel in prayer today by visiting PrayIFCJ.org. That is PrayIFCJ.org. 0:06:34.050 --> 0:06:36.330 All right, now let's get back to this political problem 0:06:36.390 --> 0:06:41.270 for Democrats. The Michigan Democratic Senate candidate nominee, you know 0:06:41.310 --> 0:06:44.040 him as El Saeed. He has appeared with Piker over 0:06:44.080 --> 0:06:46.580 and over and over again. They're basically best friends. He 0:06:46.680 --> 0:06:51.240 uses Piker's online audience to reach young progressive voters. El 0:06:51.279 --> 0:06:56.210 Saeed is now having to distance himself for the very 0:06:56.290 --> 0:06:59.510 first time from a guy that said that America basically 0:06:59.529 --> 0:07:04.860 deserved 9-11. Now, Al-Said said this. Nobody speaks for him 0:07:04.920 --> 0:07:10.240 and emphasized his opposition to, quote, anti-Semitism. His Republican opponent, 0:07:10.280 --> 0:07:13.420 by the way, former Congressman Mike Rogers, says that's nowhere 0:07:13.460 --> 0:07:16.620 near enough. And he's demanding a much clearer break with 0:07:16.680 --> 0:07:21.170 Hassan Piker. Even Democratic strategists are warning that Piker could 0:07:21.190 --> 0:07:26.950 become a serious general election liability. The Washington Post writing 0:07:26.990 --> 0:07:30.850 that this morning. And here's why this controversy isn't occurring 0:07:30.890 --> 0:07:33.990 in a vacuum. As I mentioned, Hassan Piker has a 0:07:34.050 --> 0:07:39.010 remarkable history of inflammatory statements. Perhaps the most infamous came 0:07:39.130 --> 0:07:42.360 in 2019 when he was talking about American foreign policy 0:07:42.420 --> 0:07:47.340 in September 11th and Piker said America deserved 9-11. Now, 0:07:47.380 --> 0:07:49.760 he went further at the time saying America had, quote, 0:07:49.800 --> 0:07:52.740 brought it on ourselves. Sounds an awful lot like what 0:07:52.760 --> 0:07:56.230 he's saying now about anti-Semitism and saying, well, the Jews 0:07:56.290 --> 0:07:59.890 are bringing it on themselves, right? What's interesting now is 0:07:59.950 --> 0:08:05.060 even Joel Rubin, Bernie's 2020 campaign staffer, said this on 0:08:05.120 --> 0:08:06.980 TV about the controversy. 0:08:07.300 --> 0:08:09.480 And that's where Hassan Piker needs to go in the 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:12.400 Democratic Party. We need to shame this man, get him 0:08:12.660 --> 0:08:16.340 out of our party, get him out of campaigning with candidates, 0:08:16.800 --> 0:08:19.340 and make sure that the American people understand that we 0:08:19.380 --> 0:08:21.560 have no tolerance for this kind of language. 0:08:21.810 --> 0:08:24.570 So, Joel, does it concern you when you see some 0:08:24.590 --> 0:08:28.369 of your leadership within the party or party elders say, 0:08:29.120 --> 0:08:33.040 This is all a big tent. You know, I look 0:08:33.100 --> 0:08:35.590 at there's some on the right. There's some on the 0:08:35.670 --> 0:08:37.530 right that want to be a part of the right. 0:08:37.950 --> 0:08:39.429 But I don't want to be a part of their tent. 0:08:39.950 --> 0:08:41.790 I won't vote for them. I won't campaign with them. 0:08:41.830 --> 0:08:43.190 I won't appear on stage with them. 0:08:44.240 --> 0:08:46.120 Yeah, Lawrence, I don't want to be in the tent 0:08:46.160 --> 0:08:49.020 with the guys trying to kill me. You know, I 0:08:49.120 --> 0:08:51.720 am just not interested in that. And there are many 0:08:52.420 --> 0:08:59.089 very strongly pro-peace, pro-Palestinian people who belong in that tent. 0:08:59.850 --> 0:09:03.190 Now, this is not going to end the controversy, even 0:09:03.250 --> 0:09:05.350 if they get rid of him, because there's still too 0:09:05.390 --> 0:09:08.670 many Democrats that have stood right beside Piker and have 0:09:08.710 --> 0:09:11.610 made it clear they like him. He has also said, 0:09:11.670 --> 0:09:14.950 referring to Piker, that he would choose Hamas, a terrorist organization, 0:09:15.270 --> 0:09:19.910 over Israel every single time. He's also described Hamas as a, quote, 0:09:20.050 --> 0:09:24.730 thousand times better than Israel. Now, remember what Hamas did 0:09:24.790 --> 0:09:28.950 on October the 7th. Americans were murdered. Israelis were murdered. 0:09:29.330 --> 0:09:31.910 They were slaughtered. Civilians were not only kidnapped, they were 0:09:31.929 --> 0:09:35.710 taken hostage and they were brutally beaten, killed and raped. 0:09:36.690 --> 0:09:41.730 And yet you have a top Democratic influencer who has 0:09:41.850 --> 0:09:47.930 publicly compared Hamas favorably with Israel, who Democrats are still 0:09:48.030 --> 0:09:52.020 willing to defend and stand next to. It is a 0:09:52.120 --> 0:09:55.880 massive problem. He also not only generate outrage over his 0:09:55.960 --> 0:09:59.340 treatment of the atrocities of October the 7th, But CNN 0:09:59.380 --> 0:10:02.780 even aired a clip. in which Piker argued that whether 0:10:02.980 --> 0:10:07.460 rapes occurred on October 7th did not change his broader 0:10:07.540 --> 0:10:13.260 political analysis, adding that the Palestinian resistance is not perfect. 0:10:13.960 --> 0:10:17.939 Mike Rogers, who's running for that Senate campaign as a Republican, 0:10:18.320 --> 0:10:20.780 had this to say last night at an event. 0:10:21.559 --> 0:10:24.090 Al-Said wants to represent Palestine. 0:10:24.630 --> 0:10:25.969 I want to represent Michigan. 0:10:34.330 --> 0:10:39.320 Al-Said wants to represent Palestine. I want to represent Michigan. 0:10:40.200 --> 0:10:43.750 That is the difference in this race. And if you 0:10:43.780 --> 0:10:48.130 put all of this together, America deserves 9-11. That coming 0:10:48.170 --> 0:10:51.150 from the Democrats. Hamas is a thousand times better than Israel. 0:10:51.370 --> 0:10:56.410 That again, coming from the Democrats. Derogatory rhetoric about Orthodox Jews. Again, 0:10:56.490 --> 0:11:00.000 coming from the Democrats. And now telling American Jews that 0:11:00.059 --> 0:11:05.820 identifying themselves too closely with Israel is making anti-Semitism worse. 0:11:05.860 --> 0:11:10.210 That's the definition of victim shaming. and warning that eventually 0:11:10.490 --> 0:11:15.170 someone could take action, meaning kill you, against American Jews. 0:11:15.630 --> 0:11:19.380 That is the Democratic Party. The record explains why this 0:11:19.640 --> 0:11:23.620 latest controversy, well, isn't that big of a deal compared 0:11:23.640 --> 0:11:26.059 to the other ones. This is par for the course, 0:11:26.240 --> 0:11:29.900 but it now is a Democratic Party problem because Piker 0:11:29.960 --> 0:11:33.520 isn't some anonymous person with 200 followers yelling into the Internet. 0:11:34.230 --> 0:11:37.860 He's been treated as a legitimate political influencer. Some would 0:11:37.880 --> 0:11:41.780 even argue a kingmaker of the Democratic Party. Politicians understand 0:11:41.820 --> 0:11:46.080 exactly what he offers them. Millions of young viewers who 0:11:46.120 --> 0:11:49.550 are often difficult to reach through traditional television, radio or 0:11:49.610 --> 0:11:53.470 newspaper ads. And what creates a very uncomfortable question for 0:11:53.510 --> 0:11:58.810 Democratic politicians who have embraced his platform. Where exactly is 0:11:58.870 --> 0:12:03.469 the line? If a conservative media personality said American Jews 0:12:03.530 --> 0:12:07.010 were making anti-Semitism worse and warned that somebody might eventually 0:12:07.050 --> 0:12:12.140 take action against them, Democrats would almost certainly demand that 0:12:12.220 --> 0:12:16.880 Republican candidate disassociate themselves from the party. So why is 0:12:16.920 --> 0:12:20.800 it that Democratic politicians are looking the other way? It's 0:12:20.840 --> 0:12:24.880 because they benefited from this type of radical rhetoric. They 0:12:24.900 --> 0:12:29.230 have benefited from Piker's audience, and they are willing to 0:12:29.420 --> 0:12:33.630 overlook this if it means they keep their power. To 0:12:33.670 --> 0:12:37.290 be clear, Jeffries didn't simply say he disagreed with Piker. 0:12:38.170 --> 0:12:42.170 He called the underlying idea dangerous and anti-Semitic. He had 0:12:42.210 --> 0:12:44.880 no choice if he wanted to keep his donors, and 0:12:44.890 --> 0:12:48.200 many of them are Jewish. But this controversy, it is 0:12:48.240 --> 0:12:52.100 going to move forward into the midterm elections. As Joel 0:12:52.160 --> 0:12:56.020 Rubin said, Al-Said's buddy, Hassan Piker, we need to shame 0:12:56.040 --> 0:12:58.880 this man, get him out of our party, get him 0:12:59.280 --> 0:13:02.910 out of campaigning with candidates. I don't think that's going 0:13:02.929 --> 0:13:05.410 to happen. I think there's far too many radicals on 0:13:05.450 --> 0:13:07.890 the left that love Piker and want him to stay 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:09.600 exactly where he is. 0:13:09.900 --> 0:13:12.860 Thank you for listening to the 47 Morning Update with 0:13:12.920 --> 0:13:17.040 Ben Ferguson. Please make sure you hit subscribe wherever you're 0:13:17.080 --> 0:13:20.709 listening to this podcast right now. And for more in-depth news, 0:13:21.190 --> 0:13:24.429 also subscribe to the Ben Ferguson podcast. And we will 0:13:24.470 --> 0:13:25.630 see you back here tomorrow.