Abdul el Sayed, the Democratic nominee for Michigan's U.S. Senate seat, launched a website called "MikeIsWatching.com" criticizing his opponent Mike Rogers, a Republican former congressman, over Rogers’s support for government surveillance and the Patriot Act. The site features claims about Rogers's voting record on legislation related to privacy issues, including his vote in favor of the original 2001 Patriot Act and subsequent legislation that allowed broad surveillance powers. El Sayed highlights instances where Rogers opposed measures requiring warrants for certain types of government wiretapping within the U.S., aiming to portray Rogers as supportive of invasive surveillance policies.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-06,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Abdul el Sayed, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Michigan, launched the website MikeIsWatching.com to attack his Republican opponent, Mike Rogers, over Rogers's support of the Patriot Act and related surveillance legislation. The site features ominous music and accuses Rogers of violating privacy by passing laws that enable government surveillance. Specifically, it cites a quote from Rogers where he said, "You can’t have your privacy violated if you don’t know your privacy is violated," highlighting his vote for the Patriot Act in 2001 and his role authoring its renewals. The website also mentions Rogers's support for a controversial 2008 surveillance law that allowed targeting individuals overseas without warrants.
Written for “Mike Rogers Surveillance Website” on 2026-10-06,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted
verbatim and was checked against the article text before being
stored, so you can find it in the original.
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"Mike Rogers is watching you" displayed in large letters while eerie music plays in the background.
left frames Rogers's work on surveillance as threatening
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The website, “MikeIsWatching.com,” opens with the words “Mike Rogers is watching you” displayed in large letters while eerie music plays in the background.
left uses ominous imagery to criticize Rogers's stance on surveillance
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Rogers defended the legislation at the time, calling concerns that it would violate people’s rights “fear mongering.”
left criticizes Rogers for dismissing privacy concerns as fear-mongering
Leaning: leans left for article 60974 (high confidence, 3 verified quotes) · logged 2026-10-06
Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul el Sayed launched a website attacking Republican challenger Mike Rogers over his record on government surveillance and the Patriot Act as the candidates enter the final stretch of the Senate race.
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candidates → launch → race
The website, “MikeIsWatching.com,” opens with the words “Mike Rogers is watching you” displayed in large letters while eerie music plays in the background.
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music → open → background
The page goes on to lay out a series of claims about Rogers’s congressional record.
uncertain
page → go → record
Front and center on the website is a quote Rogers made during a 2013 House intelligence committee hearing: “You can’t have your privacy violated if you don’t know your privacy is violated.”
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privacy → make → hearing
Rogers, a former Michigan congressman and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, voted for the Patriot Act in 2001.
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Rogers → vote → 2001
His former House office also said he “helped author” the Patriot Act and its renewals, although Rogers was never named as a sponsor of the bill.
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Rogers → say → bill
Roger’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
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campaign → respond → Examiner
The website also highlights Rogers’s support for a 2008 surveillance law that allowed the government to target people believed to be overseas without obtaining an individual court order.
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government → highlight → order
The law also swept up Americans’ communications.
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law → sweep → communications
Rogers defended the legislation at the time, calling concerns that it would violate people’s rights “fear mongering.”
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it → defend → rights
Rogers also voted for the measure that provided retroactive legal protections to telecommunications companies that assisted the government with surveillance following 9/11.
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that → vote → 9/11
He defended the protections, saying companies that helped the government “in good faith” should be shielded from damages.
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that → defend → damages
The site points to several other votes in which Rogers opposed efforts to require warrants for certain government wiretapping within the United States.
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Rogers → point → States
In 2013, Rogers voted against a measure that would have stopped the government from collecting people’s phone records.
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that → vote → records
At the time, Rogers was chairman of the House intelligence committee and spoke against the proposal, saying its passage would take the country “back to September 10.”
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passage → speak → September
The measure failed by 12 votes.
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measure → fail → votes
The website also highlights a 2014 bipartisan proposal that would have required the government to obtain a court order before searching people’s emails, text messages, and photos collected through surveillance programs.
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that → highlight → programs
Rogers voted against the measure, which passed the House but never became law.
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which → vote → House
El Sayed’s website also points to a surveillance bill Rogers introduced in 2011 that would have allowed companies to provide customers’ internet and communications data to the government while protecting those companies from lawsuits.
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companies → point → lawsuits
The bill passed the House in 2012, and a revised version passed again in 2013, but neither became law after failing to clear the Senate.
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neither → pass → Senate
The website noted that Rogers has since acknowledged that the FBI “completely abused” surveillance powers and that they “needed to be fixed.”
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they → note → powers
Visitors of the page are ultimately directed to el Sayed’s campaign donation platform.
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Visitors → direct → platform
With the general election less than 30 days away, the Democrat is seeking to gain ground in what is shaping up to be one of the country’s most closely watched Senate races.
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what → seek → races
Polling has shown el Sayed and Rogers in a tight contest as Democrats hope to win the seat in purple Michigan.
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Democrats → show → Michigan
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