Far-left streamer Hasan Piker dodged his controversial past in an exchange with Fox News Digital on Tuesday, hours after teaming up with embattled Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., on the campaign trail to co-host an event in her home state of Minnesota.
He also dismissed his disagreements with Democratic Party leaders after he called Republicans “terrorists” and Omar said the GOP is the “pedophile protection party” during the stream on Monday.
Omar’s decision to embrace Piker on the campaign trail marks a potentially risky political alliance, coming on the back of a high-profile raid on her Washington, D.C., home amid two dueling investigations — one for alleged immigration fraud, which could threaten her political future and citizenship status, and the other for fishy financial disclosure statement discrepancies.
The lawmaker’s appearance with Piker comes after Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed drew backlash from his own party for campaigning with the controversial Twitch streamer earlier this cycle.
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Fox News Digital confronted Piker at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport heading out of Minnesota after the Monday livestream. He was pressed on the criticism stemming from Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., and Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., after the two condemned Piker’s comments and pushed back on Democrats’ choice to engage with him on the campaign trail.
“Well, Angie Craig lost, and I think Klobuchar is going to make for a great governor,” Piker told Fox News Digital while walking to security.
Klobuchar condemned Piker’s past statements as “reckless and unacceptable,” while Craig called his rhetoric “polarizing and dangerous” and directly called out Minnesota Democrats, like Omar and Fateh, for hosting Monday’s event with Piker as a “mistake.”
When asked if the two Democratic lawmakers in Minnesota were right to call out the rhetoric, Piker wrote off their disagreements as “the beauty of democracy,” while also throwing jabs at Fox News.
“I know this is probably going to come across as confusing, because you work for Fox News, but we sometimes disagree with our leadership in the Democratic Party,” he said. “And sometimes our leadership disagrees with us.”
“But at the end of the day,” he continued, “that’s the beauty of democracy.”
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The controversy over the Somali-born congresswoman deciding to sit down with Piker with just over one week until the 2026 midterms exposes a divide among Minnesota Democrats — is it justifiable to work with Piker in order to rally his large, young, progressive base to get out and vote despite his heavily condemned commentary?
Piker was asked on Tuesday about his previous comments on Jewish people and Israel after prominent Democrats joined Republicans who have called the streamer antisemitic. He suggested that Jewish Americans were inviting violence against themselves over their support for Israel. He has repeatedly stood by his comments against Israel over its ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.
“Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism,” Piker told Fox News Digital.
“I will always fight against antisemitism and I find all bigotry to be morally repugnant and completely unacceptable. But I also find it a real shame to constantly complain about people who are outspoken on the issue of Israel’s genocide.”
It was after Democrats, including House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., began calling out Piker for his extreme comments that El-Sayed distanced himself after frequently making appearances side-by-side.
Another reason why Omar’s choice to engage with Piker has been questioned within the party.
Piker refused to comment on one issue though — his past comments claiming America “deserved 9/11.”
“You made some comments on 9/11, do you still stand by them?” Fox News Digital asked Piker, at which point he ignored the question and walked through the line for security.
Both Piker and Omar attacked President Donald Trump during their event Monday night, with the Somali-born lawmaker ripping his “obsession” with Minnesotans. Piker, meanwhile, shamed Democrats for ceding on immigration arguments to Trump’s agenda back in 2024.
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“That’s unacceptable. Migrants are not a national security threat. They are our neighbors. They are allies. They work alongside us. They are not the burden, but a benefit. They are what make this country strong, and they’re what make it this country great,” Piker insisted.
“Any Democrat that refuses to recognize that, in my opinion, is un-American,” he concluded.
Omar is running for reelection and projected for a clear win, despite being under investigation by both Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for immigration fraud and questionable financial filings.
The Minnesota Democrat’s name has also come into question following HSI’s raid on her Washington, D.C., home, with a new federal court filing referring to her as “Ilhan Nur Said Elmi, a/k/a Ilhan Abdullahi Omar,” as first reported by Fox News Digital. A source told Fox that the language used for her name in the filing was reflective of the evidence compiled in the immigration fraud probe into Omar.
Omar has defended her name as “Ilhan Abdullahi Omar” and has also denied wrongdoing, accusing the Trump administration of targeting her for political reasons.