Hasan Piker, the controversial, far-left Twitch streamer, has made his way into real-life politics, where his presence is causing a rift in the Democratic Party.  While some Democrats have embraced Piker and even campaigned with him, others have urged the party to reject the streamer over what they describe as antisemitic and anti-American views.

Recently, Piker has found himself at the center of more controversy as some critics wondered, after the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) Dinner, whether rhetoric like his was partly to blame. During his Twitch stream on Sunday, Piker addressed those who he saw as condemning him for the assassination attempt and connected the critics to Israel.

“I have noticed that virtually every single person that’s doing this, ‘Hassan is responsible for this shooting,’ happens to be a propagandist for the state of Israel,” Piker said. 

The streamer also addressed the would-be shooter’s profile as details about suspect Cole Allen emerged. Piker said that it was “not looking good,” referring to the possibility of the shooter being left-leaning. He then added that “even though 90% of the time [it] is a Trump supporter, all that matters is the one time where it’s not,” claiming that the suspect’s politics would be used as a reason to shut other Trump critics down.

When speaking about the WHCA Dinner shooting and previous attempts on Trump’s life, Piker on Monday agreed with another streamer who said the assassination attempt in Butler, Pa., on July 13, 2024, was staged.

DEMOCRATS TEAM UP WITH FAR-LEFT STREAMER WHO ONCE SAID ‘AMERICA DESERVED 9/11’

Hasan Piker, streamer and creator, attends the press conference during the Web Summit Qatar 2026 at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center in Doha, Qatar, Feb. 3, 2026. (Noushad Thekkayil/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Days before the WHCA Dinner, Piker made headlines following an appearance on The New York Times podcast “The Opinions.” During the interview, Piker accused slain UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson of “engaging in a tremendous amount of social murder.” Piker added that people understood why Luigi Mangione allegedly killed Thompson in December 2024.

During the podcast, Piker and New Yorker writer Jia Tolentino discussed the ethics of stealing. In a moment that sparked discussions online, Piker said he was “pro-piracy,” later adding that he was in favor of “stealing from big corporations because they steal quite a bit more from their own workers.”

Earlier this month at Yale, Piker told cheering students that the American “empire” had to end, and would inevitably fall, likely in violent fashion.

Piker began his daily online broadcasts in 2018 and has since gained a large following, including 3.1 million followers on Twitch, where he streams for several hours on a typical day.

The streamer has called religious Jews “inbred,” defended Hamas as being “a thousand times better than the fascist settler colonial apartheid state,” mocked discussions of antisemitism on college campuses and slammed a listener who criticized Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre as a “bloodthirsty violent pig dog.” 

Piker also minimized reports of mass sexual assault during the Oct. 7 attacks, according to The Times of Israel, saying it “doesn’t matter if f—— rapes happened on October 7. It doesn’t change the dynamic for me.”

Piker, who was raised a Muslim, has repeatedly rejected claims he is antisemitic and often says he has used his platform to fight it despite what critics say about his rhetoric.

In one of his more widely criticized moments, Piker said during a stream in 2019 that “America deserved 9/11.” After immense backlash, Piker said in an interview with The Young Turks founder Cenk Uygur that he “obviously” did not mean that America deserved the attacks and accused critics of not disregarding “the actual truth of what I was talking about,” explaining the viral quote as a critique of U.S. foreign policy.

“I should have used more precise and better use of language there,” Piker said in the 2019 interview. “It’s messed up that I would give the opportunity to the right to try to morally grandstand on an issue like this when they are 100% responsible for all the bloodshed that has been caused.”

He later admitted in the interview that his comments on 9/11 were “inappropriate.”

A friendly profile of him in the progressive outlet The Guardian, which also called him “fashionable and handsome,” fretted that his 9/11 remarks were “seized upon” by his critics.

ILLINOIS DEMOCRAT CONDEMNS PARTY MEMBERS RALLYING WITH FAR-LEFT STREAMER HASAN PIKER

Piker has recently become a point of division within the Democratic Party. Some candidates have chosen to campaign with him while others warn that legitimizing him gives Republicans political fodder.

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, who is running in Michigan for U.S. Senate, recently drew heavy criticism after he announced his plan to hold two campaign events with Piker. 

Amid the growing backlash, El-Sayed addressed the issue in a video, explaining his decision to appear with Piker as an attempt to reach people who feel left out of traditional politics. However, he also said that he agrees with Piker on several issues, including criticism of the war in Iran, lambasting pro-Israel AIPAC’s role in politics and support for free healthcare.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) condemned the planned events, with ADL Michigan Regional Director Elyssa Schmier saying that El-Sayed’s decision to appear with Piker was “yet another example of the growing normalization of extreme anti-Zionism in mainstream spaces.”

ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt condemned Piker’s “long track record of commending and excusing terrorism,” saying the streamer “routinely uses his platform to spread anti-Jewish tropes, amplify propaganda from designated terrorist groups and promote toxic anti-Zionism.”

Greenblatt said it was “absolutely shocking” that El-Sayed decided to campaign with Piker, especially after the attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan.

Progressive stars like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.; Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif.; and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani have appeared on Piker’s show. 

He appeared on CNN this week to discuss his recent trip to Cuba, boasting about appearing on his “friend” Elex Michaelson’s program after being sharply criticized on the same network by CNN anchor Jake Tapper. 

Hasan Piker attends the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Mark Guiducci at Los Angeles County Museum of Art on March 15, 2026, in Los Angeles. (Taylor Hill/FilmMagic via Getty Images)

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Effie Phillips-Staley, who is running for Congress in the heavily Jewish 17th Congressional District in New York, is also facing backlash over her ties to Piker. The Democratic hopeful accused Israel of genocide and being an apartheid state during her appearance on Piker’s show March 28, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA). 

The outlet reported that Democratic committees in several New York counties issued a joint statement condemning Piker’s rhetoric and expressing “deep disappointment” in Phillips-Staley.

“Her decision represents a dangerous and unacceptable step toward legitimizing rhetoric that has no place in this district, in mainstream Democratic politics or in any serious political discourse,” the statement said, according to JTA.

Like El-Sayed, Phillips-Staley said she did not “align with every word Hasan Piker has ever said,” adding it was important to “recognize the massive value of a platform that engages millions of young people in the democratic process.”

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., condemned Piker in a letter to Twitch CEO Daniel Clancy and several others.

“Hasan Piker has emerged as the poster child for the post-October 7th outbreak of antisemitism in America,” Torres wrote. “Hasan Piker has come out as an apologist not only for 10/7 but also for 9/11, compounding antisemitism with anti-Americanism.”

Hasan Piker attended Zohran Mamdani’s election watch party Nov. 4, 2025. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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Another Democrat, Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., called Piker “an unapologetic antisemite” and warned members of his party against associating with the controversial Twitch streamer.

“Democrats risk losing our credibility to condemn those on the right who traffic in bigotry, antisemitism, & hate when our own Members of Congress & candidates are celebrating or, worse yet, platforming those who espouse hate of any kind,” Schneider wrote on X.

Additionally, Jonathan Cowan, co-founder of the Democratic think tank Third Way, co-authored a Wall Street Journal opinion piece about the Democratic Party’s closeness with Piker.

“Mr. Piker is anti-American, antiwomen, anti-Western and antisemitic. No Democrat should engage with him. All should seek to push him to the fringe, where he belongs,” the article said.

The growing divide among Democrats over Piker underscores a larger challenge for the party ahead of the midterm elections of how to reach progressive voters without alienating moderates or handing Republicans a political opening.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Piker’s team for comment.

Sportscaster Dan Patrick said Monday that Heisman Trophy finalist Diego Pavia was handed a “brutal reality” over the weekend when he went undrafted and received only an invite to Baltimore Ravens camp.

Pavia was the first Heisman Trophy finalist in more than 10 years to go unselected in the NFLNFL Draft.

Patrick claimed on his show that it was a “really clear” message from the NFL.

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Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia throws the ball during football pro day at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., on March 20, 2026. (ANDREW NELLES / THE TENNESSEAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

“Diego Pavia was a Heisman Trophy finalist who did not get drafted. Now, there’s a few reasons why. He was very, very good in the SEC – that should stand out and that should make you draft eligible. You should get drafted just based off what you did. You did it for Vandy in the SEC. You can have personality at other positions. You can be absorbed, you can be embraced, but not at backup quarterback because quarterback is evaluated differently. You can be an elite talent and get away with that.

“The message from the NFL was really clear – if you’re not a can’t-miss prospect, professionalism is not just valued, it’s required, and that hurt Diego Pavia. Also, that he’s not a tall guy. Most of your backup quarterbacks, if you check, are not short quarterbacks. Diego Pavia might be 5-10, but you start to look at what you did at pre-draft meetings with teams. … You have (Tim) Tebow, Cam Newton, (Colin) Kaepernick, other examples of your backup quarterback being too much of a headline, or potential for a headline.”

Patrick pointed to Pavia’s friendship with Johnny Manziel and making snide comments about Fernando Mendoza on Heisman night as other reasons why Pavia didn’t get drafted.

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Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia runs the ball during the game against Louisiana State University at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 18, 2025. (Nicole Hester/ The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

“Football moves on quickly. Just as Johnny Manziel, it moves quickly. … But Diego Pavia has a personality, but he doesn’t have a personality that I want as my backup quarterback. I don’t think he’s good enough to be a starter in the NFL He’s not Doug Flutie. I mean, Doug Flutie was 5-9, Heisman Trophy winner, but he was the ideal personality to be a backup quarterback and ready to come in when need be. In fact, Flutie was ahead of his time.

“But Diego Pavia, the personality, that’s who you are. You’re selling that personality. But I’m not buying that. Teams are not buying that. Teams didn’t buy Shedeur Sanders.”

Patrick said that NFL coaches have a tough enough time trying to win games as it is without personalities becoming headlines.

Patrick added that NFL teams usually want a quarterback who is seen and not heard from, or a player who isn’t drawing too much attention to himself.

“You gotta have a backup quarterback, who you probably don’t see very much and that’s a good thing. If you’re one of the McDown brothers and you’re just there for 15 years, Chase Daniel, nice college career, you just want to make sure that guy is there just in case,” he said.

Patrick said Pavia’s reality check was that teams don’t want him to be the star, they only want him to help the starting quarterback.

“And that was the brutal reality that Diego Pavia was handed over the weekend. He did not get drafted.”

Pavia was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and had 3,539 passing yards and 29 touchdowns as he helped put the Commodores back on the map.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia talks to Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza as quarterbacks run a drill at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis on Feb. 28, 2026. (Michael Conroy/AP)

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Vanderbilt was 10-3 last season and nearly made the College Football Playoff.

There’s one key step with certain types of coffee machines that’s easy to forget — but doing so can lead to major issues with your brew.

Whether using a Keurig or Nespresso, every pod machine confronts users with the same moment after brewing: Remove the used pod.

If you take the pod out immediately after brewing, it may still be boiling hot and increase your risk of burns.

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But if you wait too long, you might forget to take it out entirely — and realize the next day that you left a damp, used pod sitting in the machine overnight.

Though it seems harmless, that habit can affect your machine’s performance and your coffee’s taste, said Andrew Pautler, the Missouri-based founder of the specialty coffee website Pull & Pour Coffee.

A forgotten coffee pod left overnight may seem like a harmless act, but it can impact flavor and machine performance. (iStock)

Pautler, whose website focuses on coffee tips and recipes, told Fox News Digital that leaving used pods in a brewer creates a “warm, damp environment inside the machine.”

That damp environment can spell trouble for the flavor of your drinks.

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The habit “can lead to bacterial growth, stale flavors, residue buildup and general cleanliness issues,” Pautler said.

He added that small habits “add up over time” — and making a few simple changes can have a big impact.

Regular maintenance habits, including removing pods, can help extend the life of single-use coffee machines. (iStock)

Pautler recommends ejecting pods after each use, as well as occasionally rinsing removable parts of the machines.

He also recommends descaling your machine regularly.

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Descaling involves running a vinegar or commercial descaling solution through the machine to flush out mineral buildup, then rinsing it out with multiple water cycles.

The process is crucial, “especially if you’re using hard water,” Pautler said.

Small habits “add up over time,” so making a few simple changes can have a big impact on your morning brew. (iStock)

“While most machines appear to work fine initially without any regular maintenance or cleaning, if left too long, they start to have performance and quality issues,” he said.

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A Keurig spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the company “recommends that used pods be removed from the pod holder once cooled.”

The spokesperson added, “Removal will assist in maintaining a hygienic pod holder.”

Keeping pod holders clean and dry is one step toward preserving the flavor of your daily coffee. (iStock)

“If you find that a used pod has been left in the pod holder, we recommend running a cleansing brew.”

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The spokesperson also recommends descaling your coffee brewer “if a used pod has been left in for an extended period of time.”

Republicans are warning that their ability to deliver on lowering everyday costs, one of their core campaign promises heading into the 2026 midterms, is being tested by an AI-driven chip shortage that has spilled into consumer markets.

“When you have a big race like we have with AI, there are secondary effects that we need to be very concerned about,” former Rep. Patrick McHenry, who served as House Financial Services Committee chairman, told Fox News Digital, adding, “It is hurting Republicans.”

Tech industry reports have for months been raising alarm over a global chip shortage. In January, a report predicted that this year, 70% of the high-end memory chips produced would go toward data centers, which store AI memory, constraining all other downstream technology and driving up prices, directly undermining Republicans’ affordability agenda.

AFFORDABILITY: THE ISSUE THAT BOOSTED TRUMP AND REPUBLICANS IN 2024 DEFLATED THEM IN 2025

President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the “Winning the AI Race” AI Summit at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., on July 23, 2025. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP)

“We see this from our handheld devices to our computers, to TVs,” McHenry, a North Carolina Republican congressman turned policy advisor, said in an interview. “Even autos are impacted, and even things such as what we think of as average everyday things that aren’t particularly high tech, like the things we use to manicure our lawns are impacted by rising prices of chips, so there’s a lot of secondary effects across consumer goods and should be a huge concern.”

Heading into 2026, President Donald Trump framed the midterms as a referendum on cost of living, saying in a Politico interview the elections “will be about pricing.” 

Historically, the party in control loses seats during the midterms. One Republican strategist told Fox News Digital that AI’s well-documented dominance over the chip market should be viewed as hurting voters’ pocketbooks. The strategist called on the three largest chip manufacturing companies to expand production, which he said would help bolster the GOP’s campaign message.

“America must win the artificial intelligence race. Companies like Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron understand that,” the strategist said. “At the same time, we can’t forget about consumer goods. Memory chip manufacturers need to increase production to boost both American AI and lower the cost of consumer goods. If they don’t, it will undoubtedly hurt Republicans politically in the midterms. How can Republicans campaign on ‘lower costs’ in 2024, but see computer and car prices rise in 2026 due to a lack of chip production?”

TRUMP TORCHES DEMS’ ‘FAKE AFFORDABILITY’ PITCH – BUT GOP PANIC IN DEEP RED STATE HINTS VOTERS AREN’T BUYING IT

The OpenAI logo appears on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen displaying ChatGPT output in Boston on March 21, 2023. (Michael Dwyer/AP)

The AI boom is increasing demand for memory chips, which are semiconductor components used in data centers, laptops and smartphones.

That chip consumption has rippled across industries. Microsoft this month attributed its rise in laptop prices to “recent increases in memory and component costs.” The smartphone market remained “under pressure,” with shipments down 6% this year, largely because of chip shortages, Counterpoint Research found. 

Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, previously a car dealership owner, warned in a letter this month his state was seeing “immediate and severe” consequences of rising chip prices and that automakers have said they could begin halting assembly lines as early as next month.

While affordability has been a resounding priority for Republicans seeking to retain control in Washington, AI advancements are also a pillar of Trump’s agenda. The White House declared last year in a sweeping plan that the country was in “a race to achieve global dominance in artificial intelligence” and cited the need for a “revitalized U.S. chip industry.”

Asked about the AI-driven affordability concerns, White House spokesman Kush Desai told Fox News Digital in a statement that the White House was cognizant of the clash and balancing it with a “nuanced” economic plan, which includes Trump’s signature worldwide tariffs, which the president restructured after the Supreme Court struck down his initial plan implementing them in the name of what he said was a global economic emergency.

“The fact that semiconductor chips are absolutely critical for everything from cutting-edge AI technology to everyday consumer goods only reinforces the importance of President Trump’s push to reinvigorate America’s semiconductor industry,” Desai said. “Hundreds of billions in semiconductor manufacturing investments reflect how the private sector is enthusiastically responding to the Administration’s nuanced and multi-faceted agenda of tariffs, deregulation, and tax cuts.”

KEVIN O’LEARY WARNS CHINA ‘KICKING OUR HEINIES’ IN AI RACE AS REGULATORY ROADBLOCKS STALL US

President Joe Biden speaks during a signing ceremony for the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 9, 2022. (Saul Loeb/AFP)

The strain on supply is also raising new questions about the effectiveness of the bipartisan CHIPS Act, a Biden administration bill designed to boost domestic production and prevent precisely the kind of shortage markets are now seeing.

McHenry, who specializes in fintech policy, said the CHIPS Act, a multibillion-dollar effort to pour federal subsidies and tax incentives into U.S. chip manufacturing, has been a “grave disappointment.” McHenry said both that the White House had “a lot more work” to do to address the supply shortage and that congressional reforms were another way to improve domestic chip production.

“Unfortunately for the taxpayer, they paid for the CHIPS Act the first time, and now they’re paying for it a second time with the rising price of consumer goods,” McHenry said. “Republicans need to address this on Capitol Hill. They need to clean up the CHIPS Act so the president can deploy these tools to incentivize and grow chip manufacturing here in the United States.”

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., who founded a successful car security company, said he sees a need for chip production expansion, tying it to consumer costs, in a statement to Fox News Digital.

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“America leads the world in AI — and we stay there by unleashing the nation’s industrial base, ramping up chip production and memory as never before and lowering the consumer costs people pay every day,” he said.

The congressman said more chips were “essential” to delivering on the GOP’s promises of “opportunity, prosperity and affordability.”

Fox News Digital reached out to representatives of Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron for comment.