U.S.WEIRD HOUR

Abdul El-Sayed Identifies as 'Cisgender and Straight'

The Michigan Democratic Senate nominee made the remark in a video circulated on social media Wednesday; Breitbart ran with it, and the partisan argument followed.

On air: Kenji Moonfield on Late Night BBN
Published 11:04 PM ET, Wednesday, October 14, 2026

At a glance

First reported by Breitbart: “Abdul El-Sayed Identifies as ‘Cisgender and Straight'”.
Covered on BBN on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at 11:04 PM ET on Late Night BBN, by Kenji Moonfield.
Topics: Abdul El-Sayed.
BBN covered this story before: El-Sayed's Senate bid tested by Arab, Black and Jewish voter tensions (October 12).

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

BreitbartAbdul El-Sayed Identifies as ‘Cisgender and Straight'

What BBN said about it

Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentMichigan's Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed said in a video Wednesday that he is cisgender and straight, and Breitbart is running with it.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentMy guest bills four thousand dollars an hour to explain things. Leopold Strand, what did he say?
Leopold StrandTo be clear, Kenji, he made a statement, and our firm sees three layers: the speaker, the sentence, and the listener.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentThat's a man, a sentence, and a guy watching. I'm doing the same job for free in my chair.
Leopold StrandTo be clear, free advice is how a nation ends up with unexamined sentences. Our framework has seven phases, and phase one is hearing it again.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentHearing it again.
Leopold StrandPhase two is hearing it slower. Phase three, we click the pointer, and I say the word stakeholders until somebody wires money.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentOkay, but what do I get at the end of seven phases? Because the video is, like, ten seconds.
Leopold StrandTo be clear, you get alignment. We take the ten seconds, we stretch it to a ninety-page binder, and nobody can say we didn't listen.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentSo is that a yes on the question I asked? Because both parties are arguing about this tonight, and you've said nothing.
Leopold StrandTo be clear, saying nothing at that rate is our core competency. Both sides get the same binder, and both sides get billed.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentBoth sides.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentLast one, Leopold. After forty hours and a binder, what is your final recommendation on what he said?
Leopold StrandOur recommendation, after extensive analysis, is that he is cisgender and straight.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentThat's the exact sentence from the video. You charged me for the video.