Vance says ‘crazy’ el Sayed would hurt middle class and auto industry

Calling a Senate candidate "crazy" on a Saturday morning show isn't exactly statesmanship, but Vance's underlying point is one Michigan voters actually deserve to chew on. Abdul el Sayed has built his whole political identity around being the guy who fights for working people, yet the specific policies he's opposed are the ones aimed at keeping auto jobs from bleeding out to Mexico and China. That's not a small contradiction. That's the whole ballgame in a state where the UAW hall and the assembly line still decide elections.

El Sayed's brand of progressivism tends to treat tariffs and industrial protection as relics of a nationalist past, something to be embarrassed about rather than used. But ask someone in Flint or Warren whether they'd rather have a trade policy that protects their plant or a senator who quotes Bernie Sanders at rallies. The answer isn't complicated, and it's exactly why Trump built inroads with union households that Democrats used to consider theirs by birthright.

None of this means Vance gets a pass for the name-calling. "Crazy" is a lazy word, and it lets el Sayed dodge the actual substance by playing victim to a mean tweet from the VP instead of explaining why he opposed policies aimed at his own state's biggest employer. If Republicans want to keep peeling off working-class Democrats in places like Michigan, the argument writes itself without the insults. Just point to the factory floor and ask which candidate actually shows up for it.