Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic candidate for Senate in Michigan, is scheduled to campaign with former President Barack Obama on October 24. However, an op-ed El-Sayed wrote in 2012 resurfaced, where he criticized Obama’s presidency as falling short of progressive ideals despite voting for him twice. El-Sayed pointed out perceived shortcomings such as inadequate economic progress and civil liberties issues. Despite these criticisms, El-Sayed acknowledges that Obama's record was better than Mitt Romney’s alternative. The article highlights the complexity this past criticism adds to El-Sayed’s current political stance and relationship with former President Obama.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
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, now running for Senate in Michigan, faced criticism after old comments about President Barack Obama resurfaced ahead of a joint campaign rally. In 2012, shortly after Obama's re-election victory, El-Sayed wrote an op-ed on HuffPost stating that while Obama wasn't the "wrong" choice, he also wasn’t the "right" one. The piece criticized Obama for failing to deliver on progressive promises made during his 2008 campaign and highlighted issues such as war perpetuation, civil liberties violations, and high deportation rates under his administration. This criticism complicates El-Sayed’s current political stance, especially since he previously expressed excitement over Obama's election in 2008 but later wrote that the jubilation was misguided due to a lack of tangible change. The resurfaced critiques raise questions about El-Sayed’s alignment with the Democratic Party and his past assessment of one of its most prominent figures.
Written for “El-Sayed Trashes Obama History” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.65, but all 4 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 66757: attributed speech only · logged 2026-10-08
Abdul El-Sayed once accused President Barack Obama of failing to deliver on the progressive campaign promises that he outlined in the 2008 presidential campaign, calling his election to a second term a kind of compromise for progressives.
asserted
he → accuse → progressives
"I realize that I have little hope because there has been less change," El-Sayed wrote in a 2012 op-ed for HuffPost.
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Sayed → realize → HuffPost
"But I have to say now what I’ve been holding in throughout his campaign and what I think all of us have to admit: Obama was not the right choice — he just wasn’t the wrong one."
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he → have → us
The resurfaced comments, published just days after the 2012 presidential election, complicate the political picture for El-Sayed as he prepares to campaign with Obama later this month.
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he → resurface → Obama
The comments also raise questions about what El-Sayed’s ideals for the Democratic Party would have looked like in 2012, highlighting his past satisfaction with one of the Democratic Party's most prominent figures.
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ideals → raise → figures
In particular, El-Sayed’s 2013 op-ed criticized Obama’s international record and strikes on Pakistan and Yemen, an underperforming economy and, in his view, little to no change in being accepted as a Muslim American.
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ed → criticize → American
"I feel no more dignified, no more accepted as cops throughout the country have usurped my right to walk the streets freely without fearing unjustified interference.
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cops → feel → interference
Inequality has accelerated and the divide between the haves and have-nots in our country has never been starker," El-Sayed wrote.
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Sayed → accelerate → country
"At home our economy continues to stagnate; its victims are so many of my peers who had also invested in ‘hope and change’ four years ago, who cannot find meaningful work."
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who → continue → work
Notably, he did confirm that he had voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012.
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he → confirm → 2008
He also asserted that Obama’s record, as disappointing as it had seemed to him, was still better than the outlook of the failed Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.
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it → assert → nominee
Even so, El-Sayed said Obama fell short of the ideal he, as a progressive, would have chosen for the country.
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he → say → country
"We really like the idea of Obama … let’s be clear,
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’s → like → Obama
for progressives who care about peace, prosperity, civil liberties and the future of our country, Obama’ reelection last night was no victory.
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reelection → care → country
It was the rock we chose over the hard place," El-Sayed wrote.
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Sayed → choose → place
In recent months, as El-Sayed waged his Senate campaign in Michigan, Obama did not endorse the progressive, staying out of a primary between him and Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich.
Like Obama and other Democrats, El-Sayed has championed the growth of government as a way to address the country’s top issues.
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Sayed → wag → issues
In addition to calling for lowering housing costs, he’s advocated for Medicare for all, opposes corporate tax carve-outs, and supports tuition-free access to higher education.
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he → call → education
Obama has still not issued an official endorsement even though he is slated to take the stage alongside El-Sayed on Oct. 24 for a rally with other Michigan Democrats.
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he → issue → Democrats
The former president highlighted the event in a post to social media on Monday.
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president → highlight → Monday
"Looking forward to being in Detroit on 10/24 to campaign for Jocelyn Benson, Abdul El-Sayed and Democrats up and down the ballot in Michigan," Obama wrote, referring to the Democratic candidate for governor in the Wolverine State.
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Obama → look → State
Abdul El-Sayed’s campaign did not immediately respond to an inquiry on the 2012 op-ed and his current-day views on Obama’s legacy.
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campaign → respond → legacy
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