NEW YORK CITY, NY \u2014 U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin this week continued a high-profile July spent appearing on national media platforms, where she has called on Democrats to act more like Detroit Lions.<\/p>\n
During an appearance on the Thursday, July 30, episode of \u201cThe Late Show with Stephen Colbert,\u201d<\/a> the Democrat from Holly weighed in on topics both comedic and serious, from a hot dog-centric debate to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.<\/p>\n Since joining the Senate earlier this year, Slotkin is no stranger to spending time in spaces that elevate her message to national audiences. In March, Democrats selected Michigan\u2019s freshman senator to respond to President Donald Trump\u2019s joint address<\/a> to Congress. Earlier this month, she was the focus of a New York Times profile piece<\/a>.<\/p>\n The latter media appearance featured Slotkin calling on Democrats to rebrand and \u201cbring back more alpha energy,\u201d in part by following the example of Lions coach Dan Campbell\u2019s style of hard-nosed leadership.<\/p>\n Slotkin repeated that message during her Colbert interview.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want people who have a gut, who are bold, who are going to put out an opinion and not try to mealy mouth it, and who are going to push when someone does something wrong and who are going to hug you when you do something good,\u201d Slotkin told Colbert.<\/p>\n Slotkin said Campbell provided \u201cthe perfect example\u201d of such leadership. She said other sports stars possess that style of leadership, including Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce; his brother, retired NFL lineman Jason Kelce; and Ilona Maher, the American rugby union player.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to bring some of that gut, bold leadership,\u201d Slotkin said. \u201cIt\u2019s not progressive\/moderate. It\u2019s not old\/young. We are in a dark place, we all know it, we don\u2019t need to hide about that. So, how do we \u2014 certainly for Democrats \u2014 chart a path, not just to play defense, but to play offense? To show people who we are and to pull them back into the fold?\u201d<\/p>\n During the exchange, Slotkin also quickly offered a prediction: The Lions will win the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n Colbert and the senator discussed the crisis at the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory where civilians have struggled for food and aid during the ongoing military conflict between Israeli and Palestinian forces. Earlier this week, The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification said Gaza has teetered on the brink of famine<\/a> for two years, but recent developments have \u201cdramatically worsened\u201d the situation.<\/p>\n Colbert asked Slotkin how the U.S. should respond to the crisis.<\/p>\n Slotkin said she was approached this week by members of both American Jewish and Muslim populations, with both seeking solutions to help Gazans.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople of many different faiths understand that humanitarian aid getting in to children is an American value, a Jewish value, and a Muslim value; it\u2019s a requirement,\u201d Slotkin said.<\/p>\n She compared the situation to her experience as a CIA agent during the U.S. military campaign in Iraq, when she said Americans were both engaging in military action in Iraq while providing humanitarian aid to civilians there.<\/p>\n Slotkin also answered questions about her former career as a CIA analyst. <\/p>\n Colbert asked Slotkin if there existed \u201ca deep state\u201d within the U.S. government, a claim made by leaders including President Donald Trump. That claim at times has tied the \u201cdeep state\u201d to members of U.S. intelligence agencies.<\/p>\n \u201cThis idea that there\u2019s some network of people that are running the world, it\u2019s just, it doesn\u2019t really match reality,\u201d Slotkin said. \u201cAnd these people in the dead of night are doing things to protect this country and make sure things don\u2019t blow up here. And, for me, you know, the way that Trump is going after them is just, it\u2019s particularly\u2026first of all, it\u2019s nasty. Second of all, it\u2019s completely counter to our interests to be demoralizing the people that are protecting them.\u201d<\/p>\n Slotkin\u2019s two-segment appearance on \u201cThe Late Show\u201d also included light-hearted banter about food categorization. <\/p>\n Colbert asked Slotkin to talk about her family\u2019s connection to the popular Ball Park Franks hot dog brand. Slotkin\u2019s great-grandfather in the 1950s contracted with the Detroit Tigers to sell hot dogs via his company, Hygrade\u2019s Ball Park Franks, at Tigers Stadium. That brand evolved to what today is known as Ball Park Franks.<\/p>\n While Slotkin did not detail her family\u2019s Ball Park Frank origin story on \u201cThe Late Show,\u201d the senator engaged the comedian on his view that hot dogs are sandwiches.<\/p>\n \u201cI prepared for this conversation because you have a really weird view of this,\u201d Slotkin told Colbert. \u201cIt\u2019s, like, definitively not a sandwich. It\u2019s its own cultural category. It\u2019s something else entirely.\u201d<\/p>\n The audience clapped and Colbert\u2019s band expressed agreement with Slotkin.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is not a damn sandwich.\u201d<\/p>\n If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEW YORK CITY, NY \u2014 U.S. Sen. 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