# Kid Rock's Comparison of Michigan Senate Candidate to 9/11 Hijackers Fact-Checked by Bill Maher

> Bill Maher challenged Kid Rock on his remarks likening Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed to the 9/11 hijackers during a Real Time episode.

- Publisher: Briefzora (https://briefzora.com)
- URL: https://briefzora.com/kid-rocks-comparison-of-michigan-senate-candidate-to-911-hijackers-fact-checked-by-bill-maher
- Published: 2026-10-31T08:13:17+05:00
- Author: Briefzora Desk (https://briefzora.com/author/briefzora-desk)
- Section: Technology
- Topics: Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan, HBO, Bill Maher, Real Time With Bill Maher, 9/11, Kid Rock
- Image: https://briefzora.com/uploads/2026/10/bill-maher-fact-checks-kid-rock-after-he-compares-abdul-el-sayed-to-9-req3xe.webp

## Key points

- Bill Maher opened Friday's Real Time episode referencing Trump's 1,300-word social-media attack after a White House dinner.
- Kid Rock, present at the Oct. 15 dinner, defended Maher before comparing Abdul El-Sayed to the 9/11 hijackers.
- Maher noted Trump's claim that a win for El-Sayed would bring jihadists to the U.S.
- Kid Rock's statement linked El-Sayed to the hijackers, claiming they were assimilated, which Maher disputed.
- In reality, 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi, two from the UAE, one from Egypt and one from Lebanon, and they arrived in the U.S. in January 2000.

## Why it matters

The remarks affect public perception of a Senate candidate and highlight misinformation about the 9/11 attackers' backgrounds.

## Article

Bill Maher opened Friday's episode of "Real Time" by referencing former President Donald Trump's 1,300-word social-media rant after their White House dinner earlier this month, comparing Trump to pop star Taylor Swift.

After a sit-down interview with Sen. Ted Cruz, who promoted his book on Justice Clarence Thomas, Maher introduced his panel: Axios co-founder and CEO Jim VandeHei and rock-singer Kid Rock, known for a controversial rap lyric about underage girls.

Kid Rock attended the Oct. 15 White House dinner with Trump, Maher and ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith, and appeared to defend Maher against Trump's claims in a record-breaking Truth Social post.

Maher said, "He said I was drunk. I was not drunk," to which Kid Rock replied, "You were pretty high." Maher asked, "We had a good time, and it was four hours, right?" Kid Rock answered, "We had a good time," adding that he left early and wondering whether Maher meant the dinner or the whole event.

The conversation then turned to former President Barack Obama's support for Abdul El-Sayed, a Muslim Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan. Maher noted that "the left is naïve and the right is hysterical" on Islam-related issues and quoted Trump: "If Abdul and the Democrats win, they will open the floodgates and welcome hordes of jihadists to our shores, creating a nightmare of violence and terror until you cannot even have a Christmas."

Maher asked Kid Rock if he truly believed that, and the musician compared El-Sayed to the 9/11 hijackers, saying, "People talk about assimilation ... this man ... good education ... but you know who else assimilated very well? Those pieces of shit that flew those planes into our World Trade Centers ... is he a wolf in sheep's clothing, or is he just a wolf in a wolf's clothing?"

Maher responded, "Not that it matters so much, but the 9/11 hijackers weren't here assimilated. They were from Saudi Arabia." Kid Rock retorted, "The ones who flew the planes were from Saudi Arabia? No."

Fact-check: 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi nationals, two were from the United Arab Emirates, one from Egypt and one from Lebanon. The first hijackers entered the United States in January 2000, showing they were not long-term assimilated residents.

## Frequently asked questions

### What did Kid Rock say about Abdul El-Sayed?

Kid Rock compared El-Sayed to the 9/11 hijackers, suggesting he was an assimilated extremist.

### How many 9/11 hijackers were Saudi nationals?

Fifteen of the nineteen hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.


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