Abdul El-Sayed dismisses questions about Hasan Piker ties on 'Face the Nation,' pivots to groceries

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed rejected questions on Sunday regarding his relationship with Hasan Piker, saying that the race was not about "a Twitch streamer in California." CBS News' Weijia Jiang asked El-Sayed on "Face the Nation" about Jewish Michiganders' concerns regarding his ties to Piker, the far-left streamer who has appeared with him on the campaign trail.

"There are Jewish voters in your state who are concerned about your relationship with Piker.

You have condemned antisemitism but not called out his rhetoric directly.

Why not?" Jiang asked.

JEWISH DEM DEFECTIONS THREATEN EL-SAYED IN MICHIGAN SENATE RACE DECIDED BY RAZOR-THIN MARGINS Rather than answering the question, El-Sayed deflected, saying that voters were not asking him about Piker and that they were more focused on the issues impacting their daily lives.

"Weiija, with all due respect, this is the third time you’ve asked about a Twitch streamer in California.

I’ve done four events in Michigan this week.

You know what didn’t come up? Twitch streamers in California," El-Sayed responded.

The candidate said that voters would rather discuss grocery prices, healthcare and the environment, among other things.

"I’m not interested in having a conversation about streamers in California because they are not raising the prices of gas and groceries," El-Sayed added.

El-Sayed is not the first Democrat to push back on questions about Piker.

Last month, Rep.

Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., demanded reporters stop asking her about Piker , saying that "Republicans are trying to make" the race about him.

EL-SAYED TORCHED ONLINE AFTER BRUSHING OFF QUESTIONS ABOUT HASAN PIKER CAMPAIGN TIES: ‘WHAT A PAL’ "I don’t agree with Hasan Piker on a lot of stuff, and I really don’t agree with him on some of the woman things he said.