Pelosi Slams El-Sayed Over Israel Stance
Left 0%
Center 0%
Right 100%
0 left · 0 center · 5 right
What happened
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., discussed Democratic politicians' comments on Israel during an appearance Thursday on Donny Deutsch's "On Brand" podcast. Deutsch, identifying himself as Jewish, named New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed as figures who have declined to affirm that Israel should exist as a Jewish state, calling such remarks antisemitic. Pelosi said those positions were "more than concerning" and "wrong," and that they did not reflect Democrats in Congress. She said she hoped Mamdani succeeds as mayor but disagreed with some of his statements, and that Michigan voters would decide whether El-Sayed is elected. Pelosi also said she did not know of anyone on her side in Congress engaged in antisemitism, or that if such people existed it was only a few.
Sourcing check · Fully on the record · 5 articles
5 of 5 articles cite a named source for the story. It was on the record from the first report.
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ONE-SIDED THIS WEEK.
Only right-leaning outlets have covered this story in the last two days;
The Guardian reported it on 2026-10-30.
Omitted — what each side leaves out
Unpacked
Left-leaning coverage has not reported this interview at all. Right-leaning coverage says Nancy Pelosi called Mamdani and El-Sayed's comments on Israel "wrong" and not a reflection of Democrats in Congress. The rebuke appears in Fox News and the Washington Examiner after a podcast host named the two progressives. She had first said she knew of no antisemitism on her side. A reader of the silent side would not know a former speaker publicly split from those views.
Right-leaning coverage splits the subject. One version keeps Mamdani and El-Sayed together and includes a rabbi's alarm that Pelosi is not hearing colleagues. Another leads on the Michigan nominee and adds a debate answer on defensive weapons for Israel.
What did Hakeem Jeffries actually say on the Israel comments Pelosi said he had made clear?
Bottom line
If you only read the left, you would miss Fox News carrying Pelosi's line that those Israel comments are "wrong."
The receipts — 4 facts one side's coverage lacks
- Mamdani said he cannot support any state that privileges one religion over another, including Israel
- El-Sayed said he struggled to affirm Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state and suggested a Jewish state was not consistent with U.S. liberal values
- El-Sayed said the United States should realize that Israel is actually not our friend
- Rabbi Yaakov Menken said that if Pelosi is one of the Jewish community's best friends among House Democrats, we should be scared by that
The Right View
Fox News, the Washington Examiner, and Breitbart reported Pelosi's remarks as notable pushback from a senior Democrat against progressive candidates' Israel views. They quoted Deutsch pressing her on party figures he considered antisemitic and Pelosi's replies that Mamdani's and El-Sayed's comments were "wrong" and not representative of House Democrats. The outlets cited Mamdani's June 28 ABC News interview, in which he declined to endorse Israel as a Jewish state, and El-Sayed's prior refusals to affirm Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. Breitbart also cited El-Sayed's debate comments on not voting to provide U.S. defensive weapons to Israel and remarks that Israel is "not our friend." Fox News quoted Rabbi Yaakov Menken of the Coalition for Jewish Values saying Pelosi did not appear to recognize antisemitism among Democratic colleagues, and said it had sought comment from Pelosi, Mamdani, and El-Sayed without an immediate response.
Our Take (balanced)
The story is substantive: it rests on a named podcast interview with checkable quotes from Pelosi and Deutsch, plus previously public comments by Mamdani and El-Sayed. Established facts are Pelosi's on-the-record characterization of those Israel-related comments as "wrong" and not a reflection of congressional Democrats, and her statement that she did not know of antisemitism in her caucus beyond possibly a few people. Whether the candidates' remarks constitute antisemitism remains a contested characterization, not an independently adjudicated finding. No left-leaning outlet has reported this. Watch for the full interview audio or transcript, official responses from Pelosi, Mamdani, El-Sayed, or House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and independent corroboration of the quotes.
5 sources
- Nancy Pelosi calls Mamdani, El-Sayed's past comments on Israel 'concerning' and 'wrong'
- Pelosi slams el Sayed’s refusal to say Israel should exist: ‘It’s wrong’
- Nancy Pelosi Trashes Abdul El-Sayed, Says His Radical Views Are 'Concerning... We'll See If He Gets Elected'
- Wasserman Schultz: El-Sayed Hasn't Done Enough to Address Concerns About His Own Comments, 'Incomprehensible' He Won't Strongly Condemn Ad
- Axelrod: El-Sayed 'Should Have Rejected', 'Offensive', Inaccurate Ad
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