The Corner
Hasan Piker Declares Socialism the ‘Real America First’ Movement at El-Sayed Victory Party
The leftist streamer talks to National Review about his socialist vision.
Leftist streamer Hasan Piker told National Review that he thinks socialism is the “real America first” movement as he attended a primary victory party for Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed — who has strictly denied any ties to socialism.
NR asked Piker on Tuesday if he is concerned that his negative comments about America will have an effect on far-left candidates and the socialist movement at large.
“No, I’m not,” said Piker, who has 10 million followers across several social media platforms. “Because I love America, and that’s the reason why I criticize it endlessly. If I didn’t love America, I wouldn’t be here. I came here when I was 18 years old, and in many respects, I achieved the American dream. But very quickly, I realized that that dream is not accessible for everyone, including people that have been here for many generations, including people that came here with with hopes for a better future, and I want to make sure that we have enough wealth in this country to offer that dream to as many people as possible, and that’s what tonight is about, and that’s what our movement is about.”
He went on to suggest that, while people will “try to use” his comments criticizing America against his favored candidates such as like El-Sayed, “our side fights for policies.” Moreover, “Our side fights for America. Our side is the real America first candidacy.”
One of his most controversial comments came in 2019, when he callously claimed on a livestream that “America deserved 9/11.”
Piker has argued that his comment was taken out of context.
Asked by NR to clarify, he said: “Of course, it’s a comment that I made that I apologize for the language that I used all the way back in 2019.”
“I’m capable of showing humility,” he added. “I’m capable of recognizing when I misspeak or speak out of turn. But the concept that I was referencing was also championed by Robert Kagan as recently as a couple months ago, which is the concept of blowback, in which there is plenty of academic consensus on that our meddling in the affairs of countries far away inevitably cause too much distress, and it has the capacity to blow back on us.”
He went on to say that the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that killed thousands of people were “of course, a horrible tragedy,” but that people “still try to cynically foment Islamophobia by weaponizing 9/11 — and we’re now living in a time where Donald Trump is about to offer nukes to Saudi Arabia, the country perhaps most responsible for 9/11.”
“So, I see that hypocrisy. I understand how the game is played, but I think it’s important to stick to the issues. And I know that Americans are far smarter than this game. They were sick and tired of business as usual politics when they voted for Donald Trump, but Donald Trump unfortunately didn’t offer an alternative, and now the cost of living crisis is worsened. So hopefully, we’re going to solve that for all Americans once and for all.”
In order to win back voters, Piker says the Democratic establishment must start paying attention to “the needs of the masses, whether it be on their demands to recalculate our allegiance to Israel, or whether it be our demands for Medicare for all, our demands for a more equitable future, where we spend money on our children rather than spend money blowing up children overseas.”
Piker appeared at several campaign events for El-Sayed, who has said he is not “technically or practically” a socialist, despite campaigning alongside Democratic Socialists like Piker, Senator Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
El-Sayed narrowly defeated four-term Congresswoman Haley Stevens in Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary on Tuesday while campaigning on a platform of Medicare for all, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and cutting off U.S. aid to Israel.
El-Sayed will take on Republican Mike Rogers in November’s general election. The far-left Democrat had polled poorly against Rogers compared with his Democratic primary opponent.
He wasted no time on Wednesday morning in redirecting the energy of his supporters toward their new challenge, saying, “Mike, by the time we are done with you, all of Michigan is going to know who you are.”