Obama makes the case for el Sayed and a Democratic Party that can disagree

DETROIT — Former President Barack Obama returned to the campaign trail Saturday evening with a message as much about the kind of Democrat Abdul el Sayed represents as about the Republican he is trying to defeat.

Obama, campaigning for el Sayed in Detroit just 10 days before Election Day, acknowledged the Democratic Michigan Senate candidate does not agree with him on every issue.

Obama said that’s OK.

Former President Barack Obama, greets supporters upon his arrival during a campaign rally at Cass Technical High School Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Detroit.(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

In a lengthy speech that mixed sharp attacks on President Donald Trump with a call for more civil, serious politics, Obama argued Democrats should be able to disagree on policy while staying united around fundamental values.

“We are not going to agree on every detail of every issue,” Obama told a packed crowd at Cass Technical High School in downtown Detroit. “Disagreeing on means is different from disagreeing on ends, on our goals.”

That distinction was central to Obama’s pitch for el Sayed, a progressive former Detroit and Wayne County public health official whose campaign has emphasized Medicare for All, getting corporate money out of politics, and ending the war in Iran.

Obama, an old-school Democrat by comparison, said he and el Sayed share the same fundamental goals.

“Abdul shares my values of wanting everybody to get health care,” Obama said. “He shares my values that if you work hard every day, you should have a living wage.”

He also offered a highly personal defense of el Sayed’s Michigan roots, pushing back against attacks that have increasingly focused on the Democratic candidate’s Muslim faith and immigrant background.

“Abdul’s as Michigan as it gets,” Obama said.

He rattled off el Sayed’s credentials: born in Michigan, raised there, the son of immigrants, a former high school football, lacrosse, and wrestling captain, and a University of Michigan graduate who became a doctor.

“He became a doctor to help people,” Obama said.

The former president also invoked his own experience as a candidate who faced questions about whether he was sufficiently American, including the yearslong controversy over his birthplace and citizenship.

“I’ve got a long form birth certificate to prove it,” Obama joked. “This stuff didn’t work on me, not in Michigan. It’s not going to work on Abdul.”

Obama’s appearance came as Michigan’s Senate race has become increasingly personal and bitter. Trump has repeatedly attacked el Sayed, including calling him a “jihadist,” while Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers has embraced some of the rhetoric directed at his Democratic opponent.

Obama said Republicans were attempting to frighten voters by portraying Democrats as “radicals or communists or jihadists.”

Instead, Obama urged voters to focus on what he described as the real stakes in the race: the economy, health care, housing, corruption, and the war in Iran.

He repeatedly returned to Trump’s record, arguing the president has failed to deliver on promises to lower prices.

“If you thought everything cost too much before, guess what?” Obama said. “Everything costs more now.”

He also blamed Trump’s decision to launch the war with Iran for rising energy costs, arguing the conflict has strengthened Iran’s strategic position and put pressure on oil markets.

Obama also took aim at Trump’s signature tariff policy, a particularly potent issue in Michigan because of the state’s deeply integrated auto industry and economic relationship with Canada.

“The weirdest thing is, he’s the toughest when it comes to tariffs and trade wars on that well-known evil empire, Canada,” Obama said sarcastically.

“Canada, it’s your neighbor,” he added. “It’s a few minutes’ drive over the bridge.”

Obama also made comments about the country’s reputation for politeness and said Trump had managed to anger a longtime American ally by repeatedly talking about annexing Canada and making it the 51st state.

Rather than lowering prices, Obama argued, Trump’s tariffs have raised costs for consumers and manufacturers.

Obama also criticized the president for focusing on renovating the White House while Americans struggle with rising costs.

The former president pointed to Trump’s plans for a new ballroom, paving over the Rose Garden, and the abundance of gold added to the White House.

“What’s up with the gold?” Obama asked. “He’s got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory.”

Obama then turned his attention to War Secretary Pete Hegseth, mocking what he described as an administration preoccupied with displays of toughness rather than governing.

He said that Hegseth, a former Fox News weekend host, seemed more interested in the “jawline and testosterone levels” of troops than in serious matters of national security.

“These are not serious people,” Obama said. “And we are paying for the price of their lack of seriousness.”

The former president’s broader message was not simply an anti-Trump appeal, however.

OBAMA PLAYS OFFENSE AND DEFENSE IN CLEVELAND: ATTACKING TRUMP WHILE GUARDING HIS LEGACY

Obama repeatedly urged voters to think about what should come next.

“This is not the time for reality TV,” he said. “This is not the time for Real Housewives, except on television, but not in our politics.”

Share this article:

Facebook

Twitter