Antjuan Seawright says Haley Stevens remains welcome at a Detroit church event
Antjuan Seawright, an adviser to Rep. Jim Clyburn, said Rep. Haley Stevens remains invited to Sunday’s Detroit church appearance, despite Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed’s statement that he did not want her there. Seawright said both Democrats were welcome and Clyburn was focused on voter turnout, not taking sides in their dispute.
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Antjuan Seawright, an adviser to Rep. Jim Clyburn, said Rep. Haley Stevens remains welcome at Sunday’s Detroit church event, despite Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed saying he did not want her to join him. “This is not Abdul’s event,” Antjuan Seawright, a Clyburn adviser, told The New York Times. “The invitation still stands.” Seawright also told The Wall Street Journal that both Democrats remained welcome and Clyburn was focused on voter turnout, not taking sides. Clyburn and Rep. Debbie Dingell had worked to bring Stevens and El-Sayed together after days of public disagreements. El-Sayed told reporters Saturday, “I don’t want any distractions.” The dispute centers on a Rebellion PAC ad linking U.S. military aid to Israel with money unavailable for domestic needs. Stevens and other critics called it antisemitic; El-Sayed’s campaign denied involvement.
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The New York Times reports that El-Sayed did not want Stevens at the Sunday unity event, and HuffPost reports that he told her to steer clear of campaign events, adding that a person familiar with the matter confirmed the reports. Breitbart also describes the dispute but attributes the claim that the campaign sought to exclude Stevens to the New York Times and Politico.