Hasan Piker pours gasoline on midterms saying US ‘pound-for-pound’ is worse than al-Qaeda

Far-left streamer Hasan Piker said the United States is “pound for pound” worse than al-Qaeda, the Islamist terrorist network that carried out the 9/11 attacks.

Piker, a self-described socialist whose Twitch streams draw millions of views, made the comments in an interview with Axios that the outlet previewed Thursday. Piker later accused Axios of turning his “nuanced answer” into clickbait.

Ahead of the November midterms Republicans have sought to portray Piker as emblematic of the Democratic Party’s “radical left.” GOP lawmakers have pointed to Piker’s previous controversial statements, including his assertion that “America deserved 9/11” and that Hamas is “a thousand times better” than Israel.

The 35-year-old, from New Jersey, has also caused division within the Democratic Party. Some Democrats have appeared alongside Piker on the campaign trail, including Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, while others have denounced him.

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