Jesse Watters and Abdul El-Sayed Clash Over Gender-Affirming Care for Minors

Debate over gender-affirming care for minors grows more intense as Jesse Watters challenges Abdul El-Sayed, a Michigan Senate hopeful. El-Sayed maintains that healthcare decisions should involve only parents, patients, and doctors. Watters questions the role of parental consent in irreversible surgeries for children during this heated discussion on medical policy.

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan’s Democratic Senate nominee, faced inquiries about sex changes for minors and transgender athletes in women’s sports. His tense exchange on Fox News occurred Monday night during “Jesse Watters Primetime.” As a progressive candidate and former Detroit Health Department director, El-Sayed initially hesitated to provide direct answers on these topics.

Jesse Watters asked, “Sex changes for minors. Do you support that?” During the same discussion, El-Sayed mentioned “great conversations” about right-to-try legislation and expressed his belief that government should not restrict the healthcare someone is allowed to receive.

“I just think the government shouldn’t tell you what kind of healthcare you should have. If you’re a minor, it’s between you, your doctor, and your parents,” El-Sayed stated. Adding, “If you disagree that healthcare decisions need to be made by a doctor, their parents, and a patient, we may just have to agree to disagree.”

Watters pushed further on whether El-Sayed supports surgeries on minors to alter genitalia. El-Sayed brought up circumcision as another example involving parental consent, asking, “Do you really want to have this conversation? Are you circumcised?” He emphasized, “Circumcision is surgery on a kid’s genitals. It’s inconsistent to decide what parents, doctors, and patients can discuss selectively.”

Watters responded, “Abdul, Michigan’s not going for that. That is sick stuff.” The conversation then shifted toward transgender athletes in women’s sports. El-Sayed initially avoided the question, critiquing Watters for not addressing issues “people actually care about in Michigan,” such as groceries and healthcare.

“You don’t seem to want to talk about these essential matters. Instead, you bring up culture wars. I’m focused on the affordability crisis that people are facing,” El-Sayed added. When the topic returned to transgender athletes, he suggested that sports governance should decide the rules.

Throughout the segment, Watters and El-Sayed also clashed on wealth taxes, religious freedom, and foreign policy. El-Sayed often tried to steer the discussion toward economic concerns affecting the working class.

Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat, will compete against Republican nominee Mike Rogers in November. El-Sayed holds a public health doctorate from Oxford University and a medical degree from Columbia University.