The second and final Michigan U.S. Senate debate was missing the fireworks of the previous one, but made up for it in substance.
The debate was hosted by WXYZ-TV in Southfield.
Republican former Congressman Mike Rogers eased back his attacks against Democratic opponent and former Wayne County health department Director Abdul El-Sayed.
Speaking to reporters after the debate, Rogers denied he was engaging in Islamophobia and then repeated false claims about El-Sayed having ties to a terrorist organization.
“This is not about the way you pray; it's the way you think. The Muslim Brotherhood is not accepted in the Muslim community. That's why it's banned in five Muslim countries,” Rogers said.
Rogers has presented no evidence that El-Sayed has ties to terrorist organizations.
El-Sayed dismissed similar attacks during the debate.
“To bring into question my commitment to the Constitution is really beneath you. I am proud of America. I'm proud to be an American,” El-Sayed said.
El-Sayed didn’t just play defense. He attempted to tie Rogers’ position on some issues to President Donald Trump as often as possible.
A new poll from CNN this week shows Trump’s approval rating at just 32%, seven points lower than at the 2018 midterm election, during his first term as president.
Immigration
The candidates were asked about border security and which changes they would make — if any — to immigration enforcement.
Rogers, a former FBI agent, praised the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“ICE enforcement has gone after rapists and murderers and gangbangers and drug dealers and human traffickers, and it has had a tremendous impact on crime,” Rogers said. “My argument: we should continue to do that.”
More than 70% of people held in ICE detention have no criminal record, according to analysis of federal data.
El-Sayed said the behavior of ICE agents makes the country less safe.
“I believe that we don't need ICE. In fact, we can go back to INS. (Immigration and Naturalization Service), back when we were a lot more safe and secure when it came to immigration,” El-Sayed said. “And then we need to make sure we have a clear pathway to citizenship so that people can come here and take opportunities that are legal for them.”
Social Security
The candidates were asked about the impending insolvency of Social Security and what they would do to fix it. Rogers said it was a matter of rooting out fraud.
“As a former cybersecurity guy for the last decade, I can tell you there are a lot of things that we can do to make sure that we get fraud out of the system,” Rogers said. “That’s a $500 billion dollar shot.”
El-Sayed tied Rogers’ talk about fraud to past support for the George W. Bush-era plan to partially privatize social security.
“Be careful when they start talking about fraud because it means that they're going to cut the program right out from underneath you,” El-Sayed said.
Rogers has also supported a plan to raise the retirement age for Medicare and Social Security benefits to 67, but has not pushed those plans recently.
Public Safety
The candidates were asked by the WXYZ-TV moderators which policies or funding priorities they would choose to reduce crime.
El-Sayed rebuffed a Rogers attack about defunding the police and said he would fund police retirement, retention and recruitment, but aim to fund other crime reduction techniques as well.
“I believe we also need to fund things like behavioral health response. Things like community violence intervention,” El-Sayed said. “I also think that we need to make sure that folks who have been in the system get full access to good education, so they don't wind themselves back into the system.”
Rogers again cited his time as an FBI agent and suggested using more federal officers in cities.
“There's a Memphis project where they infused several of the different federal agencies to work with locals to go after guns, gang crime, and it's made a tremendous difference,” Rogers said. “I think that would be a huge asset here in the state.”
The Memphis Safe Task Force’s operation has coincided with a reduction in crime, but it’s also been accused of several civil rights violations.
Big Finish
With Election Day just under two weeks away, officials are now telling voters to hand deliver their mail-in ballots.
Each candidate is hoping to get a late boost with some star power.
Former President Barack Obama will be in Detroit to rally in support of Abdul El-Sayed, Jocelyn Benson, and others on the Democratic ticket.
Trump is holding a rally to support Mike Rogers, John James, and other Republicans in Port Huron on Sunday. Rogers, who is making a trip to the Upper Peninsula late this week told reporters he was unsure if he would be able to make it to the rally.
