Photo via Washington Examiner

Hasan Piker says 9/11 remark ‘far less damaging’ than Trump’s ‘take out’ LA and San Diego

Read the original at Washington Examiner ↗
Cite

Carter, C. (2026, October 6). Hasan Piker says 9/11 remark ‘far less damaging’ than Trump’s ‘take out’ LA and San Diego. Washington Examiner. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/entertainment/4756365/hasan-piker-says-far-less-damaging-9-11-comment-trump-iran-take-out-california/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Washington Examiner · collected 2026-10-06 · by Claire Carter

Quick Summary

Hasan Piker, a left-wing Twitch streamer, compared his 2019 comment that America deserved the 9/11 attacks to President Donald Trump’s recent suggestion that Iran could target Los Angeles and San Diego. Piker argued that his statement was less damaging than Trump's comments and suggested that Democrats would not hold Trump accountable for his remarks due to concern about appearing weak on national security issues. The article highlights how Republicans are using clips from Piker’s past streams to criticize Democratic candidates associated with him, framing them as anti-American, while also noting that Piker sees this tactic as a way to divert attention from economic and affordability concerns.
Written by AI on 2026-10-06, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Hasan Piker, a leftist Twitch streamer and member of Democratic Socialists of America, recently defended his 2019 comment suggesting America deserved the 9/11 attacks by saying it was less damaging than former President Donald Trump’s 2018 suggestion that Iran should target Los Angeles and San Diego. Piker asserts that Republicans are using clips from his livestreams to frame Democratic candidates as anti-American, particularly those who campaigned with him, like Michigan hopeful Abdul el Sayed. The streamer criticizes the establishment wing of the Democratic Party for viewing him as too radical due to his rhetoric, while he argues Democrats should equally condemn Trump’s comments given their concern over Republican actions during midterms.

Written for “Trump Criticism Comparison” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Trump Criticism Comparison
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 5% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Independent
⚖️ Leans right further right than this Hedges 6 of 20 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles discuss different individuals and their remarks: one about Trump's comments, and the other about Hasan Piker comparing his past statements to Trump's.”
Daily Mail
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 1 of 22 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles discuss different aspects related to Hasan Piker's comments, but do not describe the same specific incident or occurrence.”
CBS News
Hedges 1 of 9 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different incidents: one involves Trump's comments at a rally, and the other involves Hasan Piker's response comparing his past statements to Trump's recent ones.”
Daily Mail
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 4 of 39 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the incident: one focuses on Trump's comments at a rally, while the other is about Hasan Piker's reaction to those comments.”
The Guardian
Hedges 3 of 27 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different events: one is about Trump's comments at a rally, and the other is about Hasan Piker's response to those comments.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 28 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different incidents: one about Trump's comments on Iran and Los Angeles/San Diego, and another comparing them to Hasan Piker's previous statement.”
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 22 claims Outlet record 70/100
“The articles describe different events: one focuses on Trump's comments about Iran and their potential impact, while the other discusses Hasan Piker's comparison of his past statements to Trump's recent remarks.”
The Straits Times
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 30 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While both articles discuss Trump's comment about Iran 'taking out' Los Angeles and San Diego, Article B focuses on a comparison made by Hasan Piker regarding past statements and their perceived impact, which is a separate event.”
South China Morning Post
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 3 of 7 claims Outlet record 64/100
“Article A reports on Trump's comments at a rally, while Article B discusses Hasan Piker's response to those comments.”
Los Angeles Times
Hedges 4 of 50 claims Outlet record 95/100
“The articles discuss different remarks made by Trump and Hasan Piker, not a single identical incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
19
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
5%
1 of 19 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
70/100
Washington Examiner's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-06 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Washington Examiner · 3800 article(s) · 7 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 7 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Claire Carter
122 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 President Donald Trump will hold a rally in Rock Hill, South Carolina, on Thursday to support Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) as she seeks a full term in her late brother’s seat.
🔮 Alexandria, Virginia, officials announced Tuesday that they will deactivate Flock cameras and have the automated license plate readers completely removed by December.
🔮 Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) endorsed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, a cross-party backing that could move the needle for the only Democrat on Alaska’s ranked choice ballot.
🔮 Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) on Wednesday faulted President Donald Trump for the tight South Carolina Senate race, claiming the dynamic would have been different if the president backed him over Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC).
🔮 The Department of Justice on Monday notified the Washington, D.C., Department of Corrections that it would open an investigation into the treatment of prisoners and conditions inside the district’s prisons and jails.
🔮 Alberta residents will head to the polls Monday for a historic referendum that could set the oil-rich Canadian province on a path toward independence, possibly reshaping Canada’s political landscape and its relationship with the United States.
🔮 President Donald Trump on Sunday endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection, praising the longtime leader as a critical American ally in the war against Iran and warning his exit could leave the United States shouldering more of the conflict.
🔮 New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city’s horse carriages around Central Park are “coming to an end” after reaching a deal with the City Council speaker.
🔮 When asked if he would pledge to serve the full six-year term, Ossoff answered in the affirmative.
🔮 Authorities have not publicly established Alfozan’s motive or identified any intended recipient of information that might have been recorded.
Also by Claire Carter
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 122 articles by Claire Carter →

Topics

Iran Los Angeles Republicans San Diego gop

Subjects

Piker PERSON · 9× Trump PERSON · 7× Iran GPE · 5× gop ORG · 4× Republicans NORP · 3× San Diego GPE · 3× Democrats NORP · 2× Los Angeles GPE · 2× U.S. GPE · 2× Twitch ORG · 1×

Narrative

Piker’s past statements made on livestreams have created a trove of clips for Republicans to farm as they equate the streamer to Democratic candidates in the midterm elections, framing hopefuls who campaigned with him, such as Michigan’s Abdul el Sayed, as anti-American.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-06
🔮 The president continued that the “small price” could be Iran targeting a city in the United States.

Claims (19 extracted, 1 hedged)

Left-wing Twitch streamer Hasan Piker said his 2019 remark that America deserved 9/11 was not nearly as harmful as President Donald Trump’s comments that San Diego and Los Angeles should be “taken out” by Iran. asserted
Diego → say → Iran
Piker’s past statements made on livestreams have created a trove of clips for Republicans to farm as they equate the streamer to Democratic candidates in the midterm elections, framing hopefuls who campaigned with him, such as Michigan’s Abdul el Sayed, as anti-American. asserted
who → make → Sayed
“Imagine a socialist ‘mispeaking’ like this? asserted
socialist → imagine → this
i said something far less damaging than this in 2019 & its currently the only gop midterm strategy,” Piker, a member of Democratic Socialists of America, said. asserted
Piker → say → America
Piker continued, speculating that Democrats who regularly express worry about Republicans won’t go after Trump for his comments. asserted
who → continue → comments
The streamer, who lives in California, is highly critical of the establishment wing of the Democratic Party, which views Piker as too far to the left over his inflammatory rhetoric. asserted
which → live → rhetoric
“But i’m sure dems who leaned into the concern trolling by the gop, won’t make an equal fuss abt the president!” Piker said. asserted
Piker → ’m → president
The statement that led Piker to contrast himself with Trump was made Monday evening at a midterm campaign rally in Nebraska. asserted
that → lead → Nebraska
While defending his administration’s war with Iran, Trump said the war is a “small price to pay” for safety in the homeland. asserted
war → defend → homeland
The president continued that the “small price” could be Iran targeting a city in the United States. uncertain
Iran → continue → States
“Let ’em take out Los Angeles, let ’em take out San Diego,” Trump said. asserted
Trump → take → Diego
“This is a very small price to pay.” asserted
This → pay → ?
Trump’s remarks quickly drew the ire of Democrats in the Golden State, including Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), who said he would direct the State Threat Assessment Center to monitor the situation should Iran take Trump’s remark seriously. asserted
Iran → draw → remark
Trump’s Rapid Response X account said the notion had been misinterpreted and that he was making a broader point about the possible costs of war. asserted
he → say → war
“No, he didn’t, you buffoons,” the social media post said. asserted
post → do → ?
“He was saying the U.S. is fighting to STOP Iran from having the ability to take out LA and San Diego with a nuclear weapon — which they would if they had the chance.” asserted
they → say → chance
Piker has had a similar defense when the GOP uses clips from his livestreams to reflect Piker’s true feelings. asserted
GOP → have → feelings
Piker has since apologized for the remark, clarifying that he was commenting on U.S. foreign policy, not the victims of the terrorist attack. asserted
he → apologize → attack
The streamer is aware of how his digital footprint is used by the GOP and has argued Republicans are elevating him because doing so keeps attention away from problems such as affordability and the economy. asserted
doing → use → affordability
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support